Ecclestone sure about Bahrain return, not Austin debut

Bernie Ecclestone on Saturday sounded hopeful Bahrain will host its Grand Prix as scheduled next year, and less confident Formula One will race in Austin.

He was speaking in Abu Dhabi alongside his guest the crown prince of Bahrain, amid speculation within the media and team corps that the island Kingdom is not yet ready to welcome the sport back in the wake of the 2011 cancellation.

Bernie Ecclestone

Photo by: xpb.cc

"Just like any other country that's faced troubles in the past, we will move beyond it, we will learn from it and we will grow," Prince Salman is quoted by Emirates 24/7.

F1 chief executive Ecclestone agreed that Bahrain's April 2012 date is safe.

"Why would we include Bahrain if we were not sure of the country hosting it?" he told reporters at Yas Marina.

Ecclestone however sounded pessimistic about the return to the calendar next year of a US Grand Prix, hinting at a disagreement within the organising body and promoters of the Circuit of the Americas project.

"Austin? I wouldn't want to put my money down that that will happen," he said.

"I hope it will and we are doing our best to make it happen, but I wouldn't want to say yes. For New York (in 2013), no problem at all," added Ecclestone.