From GMM
Bernie Ecclestone hits back to Melbourne's mayor while Australian organizer lists the competitors.
The city's Lord Mayor Robert Doyle said recently that the annual Albert Park event is no longer value for money for the Victorian state taxpayer. He speculated that one possible outcome was that the sport's "cranky" chief executive will replace the race by taking "the dollars of either an Asian or oil-rich Middle Eastern state".
Bernie Ecclestone hit back by warning that even though there is a contract in place to 2015, he would be "happy" to scrap the race.
"If the mayor thinks I'm cranky, I can probably be able to help him by proving it. If he's not happy with the event in Australia, if he wants to cancel the contract, we'd be happy to talk to him about that," the 80-year-old Briton said on local radio 3AW .
Melbourne is a popular and long-time fixture of the F1 calendar, but Bernie Ecclestone warned that the race is not safe even if authorities do want to keep it.
"I wouldn't say (it will stay) indefinitely. We've stayed an awful long time. There is no reason why we should leave. It's up to him, if he wants to talk about terminating the contract... he should talk to someone in our organisation and see what he can come up with," Bernie Ecclestone insisted.
Indeed, Australian Grand Prix Corporation chief Ron Walker warned that there are plenty of alternative hosts bidding to slot onto the sport's crammed annual calendar.
"The race will not leave here until 2015, that is for sure -- unless the government decides to talk to Mr Ecclestone about termination," he told the local Herald Sun newspaper.
Insiders likened Ecclestone's angry response to Lord Mayor Robert Doyle's recent comments as the calling of a bluff, and Ron Walker warned that Australia should risk its place in F1 at its peril.
"There are a number of people who the race could go to, such as Russia, India and Warsaw in Poland," he said.
Poland has rarely been seriously linked with an F1 foray, but Ron Walker also had some more potential rival hosts in mind.
"Qatar, Dubai and Kuwait want one (a grand prix), and they are negotiating in New York for a race on Staten Island," he said.
Bernie Ecclestone hits back to Melbourne's mayor while Australian organizer lists the competitors.
The city's Lord Mayor Robert Doyle said recently that the annual Albert Park event is no longer value for money for the Victorian state taxpayer. He speculated that one possible outcome was that the sport's "cranky" chief executive will replace the race by taking "the dollars of either an Asian or oil-rich Middle Eastern state".
Bernie Ecclestone hit back by warning that even though there is a contract in place to 2015, he would be "happy" to scrap the race.
"If the mayor thinks I'm cranky, I can probably be able to help him by proving it. If he's not happy with the event in Australia, if he wants to cancel the contract, we'd be happy to talk to him about that," the 80-year-old Briton said on local radio 3AW .
Melbourne is a popular and long-time fixture of the F1 calendar, but Bernie Ecclestone warned that the race is not safe even if authorities do want to keep it.
"I wouldn't say (it will stay) indefinitely. We've stayed an awful long time. There is no reason why we should leave. It's up to him, if he wants to talk about terminating the contract... he should talk to someone in our organisation and see what he can come up with," Bernie Ecclestone insisted.
Indeed, Australian Grand Prix Corporation chief Ron Walker warned that there are plenty of alternative hosts bidding to slot onto the sport's crammed annual calendar.
"The race will not leave here until 2015, that is for sure -- unless the government decides to talk to Mr Ecclestone about termination," he told the local Herald Sun newspaper.
Insiders likened Ecclestone's angry response to Lord Mayor Robert Doyle's recent comments as the calling of a bluff, and Ron Walker warned that Australia should risk its place in F1 at its peril.
"There are a number of people who the race could go to, such as Russia, India and Warsaw in Poland," he said.
Poland has rarely been seriously linked with an F1 foray, but Ron Walker also had some more potential rival hosts in mind.
"Qatar, Dubai and Kuwait want one (a grand prix), and they are negotiating in New York for a race on Staten Island," he said.