Tuesday, May 1, 2007

Bernie bags Turkey

Ah, it must be nice to be the emperor of Formula 1, reach into your pocket, pull out $2.5 million and buy off a race track! This appears to be exactly what Bernie Ecclestone has done in acquiring the rights/ownership to the Istanbul Park circuit.

Recently during the (Final) MotoGP round held in Istanbul, Bernie announce his taking control of the venue’s management and securing a Turkish Grand Prix thru 2021. As for the afore mentioned dinero, you may recall the major foopah that occurred on the winner’s rostrum last year?

The Turkish motorsports club running the Grand Prix had major egg on its face and was facing insolvency over punitive fines levied against them by the FIA. Yet it appears that Ecclestone has paid the fine in order to keep Formula 1 in Turkey for the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile Messer Ecclestone is busy plotting how to further
line his pockets by derailing the rival A1 GP series. Bernie “The Muppet” is busy scheming over starting an Asian GP2 series. This winter series would be used to promote aspiring drivers in Bernie’s newest region of Motorsports, as well as hopefully poaching teams from the A1 GP…

And while Ecclestone is busy plotting his new Asian racing venture, comes word that senior RASSCAR executives )Henchmen) have just completed a one week “fact finding” mission in China, perhaps Messer Ecclestone will wish to launch his own rival Saloon Car series in order to poach away rival Speed Car teams?

Hey, I know! He could get Tom Walkinshaw to be his whipping boy of the new “Bernie-Car” series, since I’m positive Ecclestone will fill the need (for Speed) for a superior racing series.

Just think of the possibilities of an international Bernie-Car V8 championship, with all of those V8 powered Super Cars out there… Perhaps they could borrow MAC Montoya and have him spin out competitor’s on his way to the checkered flag!

Of course one can only wonder if the news of Turkey pulling the plug on its MotoGP event is part of Bernie’s takeover…