Ken Anderson has responded to reports of the demise of US F1 by claiming that they are exaggerated – and says that he still thinks he has a chance of deferring entry until 2011.
Anderson made his comments to www.autosport.com after it was confirmed that his employees had been told on Tuesday to go home on what amounts to ‘unpaid leave.’
He says there was no point in them carrying on with the current car until the situation was resolved, an explanation with some logic to it, although paying them to stay at home might have been an even better solution.
As I suggested in the previous story, the guys were informed that it might be a temporary situation and thus there was still a glimmer of hope.
However despite Anderson’s optimism sources close to the FIA indicated tonight that it was highly unlikely that the entry would be deferred. As reported earlier, instead the team would be able to re-apply in 2011, assuming there was still a vacancy and a bid process.
Meanwhile one can imagine that the employees who have remained loyal to Anderson – who did not address them about the situation in person – won’t stick around too long to enjoy their unpaid leave status.
We await developments with interest…
Adam Cooper F1 
No mention of the rumor that Ken was not there when the reamining team memebers were told to pack it in?
Not sure of the truth on that, but it would be par for the already weak, course.
and where did Peter wander off to?
I did write that he didn’t address them, sorry if I didn’t make that clear. I have been told he wasn’t there. Peter Windsor has been seen only briefly in recent days and several sources have said he is no longer involved, although we’ve had no confirmation.
Anderson made a complete fool out of himself during the past weeks with all his lies and self-deceit. I guess it doesn’t make much of a difference if he adds another one to that list.
I knew something was a miss when I contacted USF1 in late January to find out the actual dates of the “alleged” test at Barber. I was going to drive 8 hours to take my son to see a “real” race car. I never heard back from them.
So in all of this mess, we have no F1 team in the US and we lose Peter on the grid with the mic. This just sucks all the way around. I’m a diehard F1 guy and after all of this bullshit, I’m not even excited that we start in 9 days….I’m actually sad.
I feel your pain Chris. I consider myself and fellow US Formula 1 fans to being the best in the world, since we cheer from afar! Ken Anderson let everyone down with his half-*ss attempt at building a truly unique and awesome team.
The days of (E) Jordan, Williams and Dennis are over. You must have a true corporation built around a team prior to running in F1.
I agree with you and will dearly miss Peter on the mic. He and Varsha are the best (been following them for 20 some years). I’m hoping my McLaren team is for real this year!
You will miss Peter Windsor on the grid with the mic?!?
You are a rare commodity then! Wait till you hear Will Buxton on the grid before feel for the “loss” of Peter Windsor.
Yeah, I liked him on the grid. I always made it a point to watch the pre race stuff b/c I liked the way he walked the grid annoying everyone, even though I could have zipped right to the start with the DVR. He is all I know as a grid reporter, really. I started watching F1 passionately only about 6 years ago. So, I don’t really know more about Peter than what I see and hear on the telecast since that time. I never heard of Buxton until yesterday. I guess I’m just accustomed to having him there and now it will be different. Actually, F1 will be different. Half the teams are now gone from when I got hooked.
Now with all this B.S. going on, I’m learning more about Peter and his past.
I was soooo jacked up for this year with USF1. Not anymore.
Well, Chris we need to get you caught up. (I’ve been passionately following F1 for over 22 years! I remember the first telecasts of F1 on ESPN2 (with bob Varsha of course), then ESPN, then SpeedVision and now SpeedTV. Bob has been around on TV in F1 for almost 20 years. Peter, ran into him at Long Beach several years.
As for teams; here are some that have come and gone during my time: Jordan, Tyrell, Stewart, Jaguar, Minardi, Prost, Pacific, Simtek, Larrousse, Lotus (which are back), Benetton, Super Aguri, BAR, Toyota, Honda, Midland, Sauber.
Let’s see how many of the new teams will make it to the end of 2010….
One last thing – GO McLaren!!!
Ken Anderson responds from an undisclosed location. The FIA needs to end this once and for all.
Black Knight, is that your usual moniker or did you have the same thought I did that USF1 and Ken in particular are like the Black Knight from Monty Python?
Both actually – anyone who can’t see the irony should take at look at the Black Knight scene from Monty Python and the Holly Grail on uTube. Chad Hurley might appreciate the attention:)
I think Anderson has the right idea so far as design and manufacturing is concerned. Finance is the where the project failed. Look how many years Sir Jackie Stewart worked to round up the budget (several season’s worth) to launch Stewart Grand Prix. USF1 needed to have at least letters of intent from committed sponsors before even submitting an entry.
Surely not. They had the money from FOM and from Hurley. The project was mismanaged from the beginning — no schedules, no organisation, no plan. If finance had been the problem, they would have produced a working car and then been forced out, broke, by Spain, a la Super Aguri. The problem was that no-one making the decisions had any idea of what they were doing.
I’m going to disagree slightly (not on the mismanagement part).
I think they built USF1 more like a good idea than a good company. I’ve been told a tale of a company that had huge start up capital and built a huge warehouse for what they were to sell and a wonderful delivery system and a brilliant website but failed within months as they forgot (in essence) to have customers to keep the money flowing. Everything was built in the sense of already have customers but they had none and so no fresh money.
US F1 seems to be a similar theory but the customers here are the sponsors and a couple fell through. There was no leeway in their budget. This also suggests that there would have been little room for spare parts in case of large accidents – not too dissimilar to Virgin not having a spare front wing.
P.S. I suspect Sir Frank Williams would have been able to keep the team alive. I really must get on with reading the book ‘Williams’ I got for Christmas – it’s next in line to be read.
Yes, there’s a marvellous untapped resource in the US in terms of massive aerospace experience and a huge number of very capable suppliers…
But, but, but…
No-one has produced an internationally competitive racing car in the States above GT level in years. AAR’s GTP Eagle-Toyotas in the late 1980s/early 1990s may have been the last ones. Trying to come in right at the top was perhaps foolish.
Wirth proved himself in sportscars first. Lotus has been built in the UK, in the heart of motorsport valley, using existing facilities and very experienced F1 people, Campos is using Dallara who do build internationally competitive chassis. Even with those more solid foundations, all three will struggle for pace. It’s also noticeable that only the two who have based themselves in the UK have actually got their cars out testing.
USF1 never had a chance with leaping in at the top like this – they needed to prove themselves with something more realistic first. It’s a real shame and I feel for the obviously very enthusiastic and skilled workforce involved.
I find it amazing that Anderson appears to make no apologies for the string of false statements made by himself and Windsor throughout this whole debacle, as well as the false promises made to members of staff who may have moved to the U.S in the belief they were taking part in a serious organisation.
To then think that the FIA will be happy to defer their entry for a year just smacks of incredible arrogance (or stupidity). The only way the FIA would do this is if they had 100% conclusive proof that USF1 were able to make the grid next year. They could not afford this whole scenario playing out again in 12 months time.
How could USF1 prove this? Who is going to give them any sponsorship money after what has happened? Who would put their trust in Anderson and Windsor to run things? The only sensible action is to re-open applications for next season as I’m not convinced Stefan GP have the necessary infrastructure to be able to commit long-term to F1.
The fact that neither Anderson nor Windsor had the backbone to deliver the news to the staff is perfect evidence as to why they are not fit to run a team.
Bring out your dead!
Brillant !
I still like my theory of Hurley F1 with new management.
BTW: new tweet from the wonderful Dr. Warren – Its been a horrific month for sure. I Won’t give up on F1. Maybe have to take a different route but my determination to contribute remains
so do i
I read that whole Autosport interview to see where they were with the car. According to Anderson the problems were all sponsorship. Everything was on schedule, then oops some money fell through and that derailed everything. I don’t buy that. I’m sure the car was way behind also. If they just had something that looked like a car even if it wasn’t quite race ready then surely their chance of keeping the show on the road and getting a new sponsor would have gone up about 300%.
I’ve watched all the USF1 promotional videos. They seem to have managed to build a nose and a chassis, or at least part of a chassis. They had some guy wrap some wires around the car. What else? Dying to know.