2012 Inaugural F1 Austin Race in Jeopardy after Contract Dispute

Next year’s first ever Texas Grand Prix may be in jeopardy after construction of the circuit was stopped following a dispute between Formula One, race promoters and developers of its contract.

A statement from the developers said that the project had been halted “until a contract assuring the Formula One United States Grand Prix will be held at Circuit of The Americas in 2012 is complete. The race contract between Formula One and Circuit of The Americas has not been conveyed to Circuit of The Americas per a previously agreed upon timetable.

“While construction at Circuit of The Americas has progressed as scheduled with over 300 workers at the construction site daily, all work will suspend immediately. The delivery of the Formula One Grand Prix race contract will allow construction operations to resume.”

The announcement follows remarks made by F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone in Abu Dhabi over the weekend to the effect that he would “not put money” on the race taking place given the dispute between the Circuit of the Americas and Tavo Hellmund, who holds the contract to run the race.

“There are two parties,” Ecclestone said. “One is building a track, the other has the contract and they’ve forgotten to talk to each other. I’ve told them they need to get married.”

Earlier in the day Texas State Comptroller Susan Combs revealed that the annual $25m of public funding, which would effectively cover the sanctioning fee collected by Ecclestone and which is deemed crucial to the race’s success, was by no means guaranteed and would certainly not been paid out in advance of the event.

Such fees are usually made well in advance of races and thus far none has been made to cover the inaugural Austin event.

Combs said she was “concerned” by the ongoing controversies and added that the recent announcement of a second race in the United States, in New Jersey, from 2013, could jeopardise the Austin project.

“Additional races have the potential to reduce the number of attendees to a Texas race, thereby decreasing the economic impact,” Combs said.

“The ongoing controversies are a concern and we will continue to monitor them.

“Let me state clearly: We have not paid out any money for the Formula One event. The only dollars that can be spent on the United States Grand Prix are tax revenues attributable to the successful running of a race. The state of Texas will not be paying any funds in advance of the event.”