Prost working on a Saudi connection

Team Prost made news headlines regularly of late, but not in the way they hoped for. The Prost team is in financial dire straits and rumours are strong that the team may not continue, despite Alain Prost's assurance this is quite the contrary.

Reports on Saudi television suggest that Prost may be offered help from Prince Al Waleed of Saudi Arabia. There were rumours that the Prince had previously been in negotiations with the ailing team before they filed for bankruptcy last week and now it's possible he will reopen negotiations after the religious festival of Ramadan ends next month.

Prost has a few options to keep his team, of which one is Al Waleed. According to reports, there are ongoing negotiations in which Al Waleed will take a ten percent share per annum for a period of three years as a return for supplying Ferrari engines for 2002. The cost of the engines is estimated at $35 million per season.

Al Waleed is quoted by Sport.com: "If it is not accepted in all its detail, talks will be broken off".

Saudi Arabia has been longassociated with Formula One. First associated with Williams in the early 1980s through Saudia sponsorship, the Saudi-owned TAG group now owns 40% of Team McLaren as well.

UK's Guardian newspaper also suggest that Renault team boss Flavio Briatore may be linked with a move to Prost. In the summer it was anticipated that Briatore could have launched a takeover bid of the team that he originally sold to Alain Prost back in 1997. However, no independent confirmation of these discussions is available.

- Motorsport.com