Zoom Wurz aiming to lead a new Formula One team

Formula One driver Alex Wurz has decided to take on the role of Team Principal for a potential new competitor planning its inclusion on next year's starting grid, Autosport reports.

Having worked with the Benetton, McLaren, Williams and Honda teams, Wurz is currently linked to the Brawn GP outfit but it seems the 34-year-old Austrian is now prepared to bring his F1 career to another level.

In addition to the USF1, Prodrive, Lola, and Campos operations vying to join the ranks of Formula One, it appears that investment firm Superfund - with the company's Austrian founder and racing enthusiast Christian Baha at the helm - is working on its own project as well and has filed its registration with the sport's governing body, the FIA.

Despite the opposition coming from the majority of existing teams against the budget cap plan imposed by FIA President Max Mosley, and despite the ongoing talks concerning the matter, there is no doubt that the cost limitations introduced into the F1 world have brought about keen interest from several groups – exactly as Mosley expected.

The Team Superfund project has been looking into key people, but with more team inscriptions than places available on the Formula One grid, it is understandably waiting confirmation of its participation in the 2010 championship before going any further with the purchase of facilities and hiring of personnel.

The outcome of the talks between the Formula One Teams Association and the FIA might also change the F1 environment as well, since the prospect of information and equipment sharing have been mentioned.

In that regard, it seems that Team Principal Wurz is looking into forming a partnership with an existing UK-based team, in which facilities could be rented or shared in the same physical space while Superfund constructs its own factory elsewhere, perhaps in Austria.

The Autosport report also indicated that the necessary money was in place, in addition to a deal with Cosworth as an engine supplier.

Daniel BASTIEN
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