The Formula 1 race scheduled to be held in November 2012 at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas appears to have been saved, and with it, the MotoGP race the season after. After a dispute over the sanctioning fee and the terms of the contract between Formula One World Championship Limited and the Circuit of the Americas, and a game of brinkmanship between F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone and CotA founding partner Bobby Epstein, the Austin facility finally buckled, wiring an advance payment to Ecclestone's organizing firm just hours before the deadline - a meeting of the World Motor Sports Council in New Delhi - and securing the contract for the F1 race.
With confirmation of a signed contract from Ecclestone, work resumed at the circuit almost immediately. Construction had originally been halted on November 15th, when the dispute between Ecclestone and CotA first blew up. A series of press releases followed, and some hard bargaining ensued. But Ecclestone held the upper hand throughout the negotiations, throwing in an announcement of another F1 race to be held in the US, the New Jersey Grand Prix at a street circuit on the banks of the Hudson River looking across to New York City. In the end, the Austin circuit appears to have acquiesced to Ecclestone's demands.
Alain de Changy Colin Chapman Dave Charlton Pedro Matos Chaves Bill Cheesbourg Eddie Cheever Andrea Chiesa
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