MAY 15, 2002

Premier 1 pops up again

MANY people in Formula 1 circles has thought that the demise of Reynard meant the end of the planned Premier 1 Grand Prix motor racing series which is due to kick off next year but the organizers are refusing to give up and have announced that they have reached a deal with Chelsea Football Club to join Leeds United as the British teams involved in the series. The organizers say that they hope Johnny Herbert will drive the Chelsea car.

But Herbert was decidedly non-committal about the idea.

"I've been a Chelsea fan all my life," he was quoted as saying, "and this drive would be one of the options I'd look at for the future depending on my success in America."

The teams who have so far expressed an interest in the series are Holland's Feyenoord Rotterdam, Portugal's Benfica and Belgium's Anderlecht.

The series is due to kick off in March 2003 but the organizers have yet to say who will build the cars after the collapse of Reynard.