If you listened to our podcast, you heard us discuss the reasons we feel Honda may be leaving the sport of F1.You also might recall Grace and I discussing the simple fact that it is going to cost Honda a small fortune to just get out of F1 and if they are facing this fact, why not stick it out a year and see what Ross Brawn’s 2009 car will bring? Well, the fine folks (namely Kevin Eason) at the times has presented a case for 100 million pounds to exit. You can read the full article here.
In many respects, Honda seem to me to be making an exit for some other reason. They see something on the horizon that is not savory about F1. They see a changing car market and need every dollar they can get to beat all other makers to the punch with a car of the future. They see major issues with the FIA or FOM or CVC or FOTA. Or could they just realize that they have really been crappy for all these years and the 8-ball has been shaken? Whatever it is, the exit will be pricey. The Honda Motor Company President Takeo Fukui was quoted as saying:
“Five years from now, I think history will show we made the right decision,”
As Dave Richards says, it is not a question of taking over the team from Honda for nothing, it is about having the resources to sustain it over time. That is the big question on everyone’s mind. Who has that kind of dosh? Ok…besides Bernie.
