Red Bull could rescue New York’s F1 race

Dietrich Mateschitz

(GMM) Red Bull, the Austrian energy drink and championship-winning F1 team owner, could be the savior of the embattled New York grand prix.

Bernie Ecclestone has reportedly told a motor racing website that billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz should step in to fund the race, after organization and funding shortfalls forced the delay of the inaugural event, which had been scheduled for 2013.

Christian Sylt, the F1 business journalist who recorded Ecclestone's Red Bull quote, said he thinks the sport's chief executive is serious.

"In the absence of state support, I think the only way the grand prix of America can proceed is if a wealthy backer gets behind it.

"Red Bull certainly has the resources to do so and it clearly has an interest in promoting its brand in the area," Sylt told the New Jersey newspaper Star-Ledger.

"It is also worth mentioning that Ecclestone told me that if a backer comes on board very soon there is a possibility that the race could take place next year," he added.