Full Throttle

Government officials from Montreal are due to attend a meeting with Bernie Ecclestone this week in an attempt to save the Canadian Grand Prix.

The race was axed without warning from the 2009 calendar earlier this month, with Formula One commercial rights controller Ecclestone claiming that organizers owed money dating back three years.

Race officials have rejected the suggestion they owe Ecclestone money for the 2006 and 2007 races and are now ready to unveil an “action plan to save the Canadian Grand Prix”.

Montreal Mayor Gérald Tremblay, Raymond Bachand, the Quebec minister for economic development, and Michael Fortier, the federal minister of international trade, are set to meet with Ecclestone in London on Thursday.

The Quebec government has already indicated that it is willing to help with any bail out.

Bachand told the Montreal Gazette: “If we are able to reasonably and responsibly save this event, we will do it.

“I am starting to get some pretty reliable numbers. I am going to negotiate with Mr Ecclestone, so we will keep our cards to ourselves.”

Mayor Tremblay, a piece of advice from this humble bumbling correspondent: If you intend to “negotiate” with Bernie Ecclestone you better don your Knife-in-the-Back body armor prior to entering inot any smoke filled rooms.

Related articles:

• NDP would return Grand Prix to Montreal: Layton
• Grand Prix promoter says only feds can save F1 race