Ecclestone ready to deep-six USGP

Speaking in the July edition of F1 Racing, F1 boss Ecclestone appears ready to walk away for the USA market, claiming that auto racing in the USA just isn't that popular.

"Let's put things in perspective," he said. "The TV ratings in the US have always been pretty dismal. Single-seater racing in America is extremely marginal and even a top-end NASCAR race only attracts the same sort of TV viewers as F1 gets in Italy for an average race. That's nothing to write home about.

"F1 has never got anything good out of the US. We've never had a big committed US sponsor. We could hold 10 Grands Prix in the US and a handful in Europe to boost F1's popularity in the States – but what would be the point of that?"

However, McLaren boss Ron Dennis thinks the USGP could continue.

"Last year was a bit of a setback for the sport," he said. "Keeping the race on the calendar will depend on the fans' enthusiasm. I wouldn't be surprised if this year's audience is quite good. I still think a race at Indy next year is a possibility."