Neben Team Griechenland leidet auch der zweite Newcomer, Team Singapur, unter massiven Geldproblemen. Aus diesem Grund haben sich die A1GP-Verantwortlichen dazu entschlossen, den Asiaten finanziell unter die Arme zu greifen, indem man die Leitung des Teams übernimmt (bzw. seit dem Rennwochenende in Malaysia übernommen hat).
Hier findet ihr den entsprechenden Artikel: a1podium.com
Denis Lian, zweiter Fahrer von Team Singapur, macht allerdings mächtig Stunk gegen diese Entwicklung - wohl hauptsächlich, weil Christian Murchison aufgrund seiner guten Leistungen (Platz 8 in Peking) von den A1GP-Verantwortlichen als Stammfahrer auserkoren wurde!
Wenn ihr wollt, kann ich ja mal Auszüge aus seiner E-Mail (?) an irgendeinen Fan hier posten...
OK, hier habt ihr - mit reichlicher Verspätung - die angesprochene Mail:
Zitat:
My Fellow Singaporeans,
The decision as to who drives what, when and where in A1 Team Singapore, unfortunately doesn't rest with a Singapore entity anymore. That right has been stripped away from us because A1GP Team Singapore Pte Ltd., lapsed on their franchise installments simply due to a lack of sponsorship funding. As of round 3 at Beijing, the organizers (A1 Holdings) have taken it upon themselves to field our national car, with an Australian driver at the wheel and a British team running the show. There is not a shred of Singapore left in that equation, yet it claims to be racing for the pride of our nation. As it stands, A1 Holdings is entertaining rival bids for our national franchise. They are not trying to help revive A1GP Team Singapore Pte Ltd. by roping in sponsors as the press proclaims. The marketing and PR company employed to put a positive spin on the team, eventually ended up manipulating the media to paint a negative picture on me so as to promote the Australian driver, under the pretext of "I was difficult to control media wise and the other guy is easier". Just yesterday, the PR director admitted that he had aligned himself with A1 Holdings, and is now working directly for them. Integrity definitely isn't one of their strong suits. As for the Australian driver steering our car. He is just a lucky pond in this entire exercise. Until this debacle of ownership is settled, A1 Holdings will not put a Singaporean in the seat. They know it's going to irk our national pride in the short term and that would hopefully accelerate local investors to step in. So, that's why they are using an Australian that has been without a drive for the last 2 years, he is desperate to drive anything so that he can relaunch his career back home in Australia (don't get me wrong, I think Christian is doing a fine job and he's a pretty pleasant guy to boot). Truth be told, A1 team Singapore is just a stepping stone for him. All that PR hype that he will serve his National Service, let's be brutally honest, if he gets a paid drive in the Australian touring car championship, do you really think he will give that up and patriotically embrace national service. Hmmm, let's see now, well paid professional racing driver or penniless and bald recruit. You decide! Singapore will be a very distant thought in his mind when he's lined up on the grid on some Australian circuit.
The ultimate sacrifice though, was paid by the franchisee themselves. These individuals truly believed in the concept of A1GP. About a level playing field which allowed a country with limited motorsports heritage such as ours, a chance to compete with motorsports giants like England, France and America. A real chance to hold our heads high on the world stage. My heart goes out to these people, because they had the guts to put their money where their mouth is, and that's a lot more then can be said for a whole host of wealthy individuals who can't walk the talk. As the only true Singaporean to have raced for the pride of our nation at the A1 Grand Prix, I would like to thank them for giving me this opportunity of a life time, and as brief as it may have been, it was by far, one of the proudest moments of my life.
Cheers
Denis Lian
Team Director
Racing For Singapore
MOB: (65) 91476755
DID: (65) 62386875
FAX: (65) 62386801
www.denislian.com
A1 Team Singapur hat - verstärkt durch den aktuell vorherrschenden Formel 1-Hype im Stadtstaat - (wie erwartet) größte Probleme, Sponsoren für die kommende Saison "an Land zu ziehen". Dies könnte eine Nicht-Teilnahme an der Weltmeisterschaft 07/08 zur Folge haben.
Zitat:
Formula One spells bad news for A1 Team Singapore
With F1 zooming in next year, Republic's A1 team are squeezed out of sponsorship race (By Terrence Voon)
NOT everyone is glad that a Formula One race will be held in Singapore next year.
Because of the F1 hype, Singapore's A1 Grand Prix racing team are being squeezed out of the sponsorship race.
Unlike F1, where drivers represent their teams using customised cars, A1 competitors represent their nations with standardised vehicles.
With less than three months to go before the new A1 Grand Prix season flags off, Team Singapore have yet to secure a sponsor.
This means that their participation in the 2007/08 edition is looking increasingly unlikely.
A1 Holdings, the series organiser, has been paying the bills for Team Singapore after the debutants ran into financial problems last year.
It costs about US$7 million (S$10.7 million) a season to fund a team. The sum has allegedly discouraged many potential investors, especially with the Singapore GP just round the corner.
Anand Vathiyar, executive director of local public relations consultancy UP Media, revealed that a 'very nationalistic local company' had initially wanted to give Singapore's A1 outfit up to $200,000.
'However, as soon as news about F1 broke, they told us they would need to park that money for F1 hospitality, because it's a proven product,' he said.
UP Media was the media and marketing partner for A1 Team Singapore when it was launched with much fanfare last September.
However, the company parted ways with the team last week, saying that it wanted to concentrate on 'chasing the F1 dollar'.
Singapore Motor Sports Association president Tan Teng Lip said it was clear why investors have shunned Singapore's A1 team.
'Sponsors look for returns, and dollar-for-dollar, F1 is a lot better,' he said.
Also, Singapore does not host an A1 race, and Tan says this may have worked against the team.
'It's going to be very tough for them because Singapore does not have a permanent motor sports circuit to host an A1 race.
'F1 is already confirmed, so that's an advantage.'
Major local companies contacted by The Straits Times declined to confirm if they had snubbed the Republic's A1 team in favour of F1's Singapore GP.
But it is understood that at least two companies pulled out of sponsorship talks with Team Singapore when the F1 race here was confirmed in May.
Said Vathiyar: 'You can't blame the sponsors. It was a business decision.
'While F1 may be the best thing to happen to Singapore, it was the worst thing to happen to A1 Team Singapore.'
However, A1 GP's Asia-Pacific chief executive officer David Clare argued that F1 has actually raised the profile of motor sports in Singapore as a whole.
'There's a lot more motor sport interest in Singapore, and there's room in the country for more than just F1,' he insisted.
Australia, Britain and Malaysia are among the countries that host both F1 and A1 races, in addition to supporting a national A1 team.
Clare said that there are still 'one or two interested parties' who may yet step forward to bail out Team Singapore.
He said the final decision on Singapore's future as an A1 team will be made in the next few weeks.
Nächstes Thema anzeigen Vorheriges Thema anzeigen
Du kannst keine Beiträge in dieses Forum schreiben. Du kannst auf Beiträge in diesem Forum nicht antworten. Du kannst deine Beiträge in diesem Forum nicht bearbeiten. Du kannst deine Beiträge in diesem Forum nicht löschen. Du kannst an Umfragen in diesem Forum nicht mitmachen. Du kannst Dateien in diesem Forum nicht posten Du kannst Dateien in diesem Forum herunterladen
Kalender 
