• Caterham

Caterham 'still hopeful' of finding new buyer

January 22, 2015 « Alonso to debut McLaren MP4-30 at Jerez | Chilton eyes 2016 IndyCar seat »

Caterham's administrators are refusing to give up on finding a new buyer despite admitting time is quickly running out for the team to make a return to the F1 grid in 2015.

Caterham fell into administration in October last year but returned to the final race of the 2014 season thanks to a crowd-funding initiative. While Marussia appears to be on the verge of securing a rescue deal F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone has said it is unlikely Caterham can be saved at this stage, though Finbarr O'Connell, of administrators Smith & Williamson, is still defiant.

"I am still hopeful," O'Connell told Reuters. "As long as there are people there who have got a real possibility of doing something, I'm not going to close it down. Because if I do, then I will just be organising an auction as regards the assets - which I can do at any stage anyway."

By finishing ninth in the constructors' championship last season Marussia is in line for significantly more prize money and revenues than Caterham, which scored no points in its five year existence. As a result Caterham is in a more difficult position when it comes to finding a buyer and O'Connell is wary of the time constraints ahead of the new season.

"I've had people visiting the site. Some people are trying to find a way to make it work for them. We will do anything we can to make it happen, but it's really in the hands of the prospective purchasers. I'm very conscious that a time will come when it will not make sense for anybody to invest large sums of money in racing the Caterham team for the 2015 season. Time will just run out. I'm not going to stifle any interest, but time is definitely running out."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.

Feeds: ESPN Staff