Honda has announced that it will be pulling out of Formula One next season. Blaming the current economic climate for the decision, Honda is currently looking for a buyer for the team.
This latest news leaves British driver Jenson Button and his team mate Rubens Barrichello without drives, and the workers at Honda’s Brackley headquarters facing redundancies. There has been a deadline of January set for finding a buyer for the team, but in a sport where you would expect to spend more than £300 million a year, it is unlikely to find one in time.
In a statement from Honda’s president Takeo Fukui, he said “Honda Motor Co. has come to the conclusion that we will withdraw from all Formula One activities, making 2008 the last season for participation,”
He went on to say, “Honda must protect its core business activities and secure the long term as widespread uncertainties in the economics around the globe continue to mount.”
Honda has struggled to make an impact since rejoining the F1 constructors in 2006, earning only 14 points last season and being largely uncompetitive in the last two seasons.
Last month Honda announced that it would be building fewer road vehicles in the US, Europe and Japan, as the economic climate hits the motor industry hard.
The new 2009 Formula One season will kick off on the 29th March in Australia, and if a buyer isn’t found there will only be 18 cars on the grid.
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