Following Honda's withdrawal from the sport in early December (2008), both team principal Ross Brawn and Honda Racing CEO Nick Fry have been endlessly trying to find an investor ready to secure the necessary funding of an F1 campaign in 2009. However, despite announcing that they have limited the number of possible (and willing) investors down to 12, no news about a possible buyout have emerged.
“I really hope there is a solution there because there are a lot of great people at that team. It is a team that should be racing and I am still a great supporter of Jenson Button. I think he has never had his fair opportunity to shine and show his true talents. But being realistic, in the current world, it's going to be a very difficult uphill battle,” said Richards in an interview for autosport.com.
However, Brawn insisted that the buyout (if any) should happen at least 6 weeks before the start of the new season, as the team's mechanics need that time to incorporate a new engine into the car's design.
The lack of interest in purchasing the Honda F1 operations can also be explained by the team's unstable situation ahead of the 2009 season. Nobody knows just how much the mechanics have developed the car's aerodynamics, an engine supplier is yet to be signed and none of the drivers have concluded any on-track testing during the winter (therefore getting to know the car's behavior on slick tires).
Richards argued that Honda should have thought about all these aspects way before deciding to pull out of F1, as it would have made the buyout much easier. Under the current circumstances, no one is willing to pump money into an uncompetitive F1 operation.
"If it had been thought about and pre-planned a little bit more then I am sure it would have been done differently," concluded Richards, according to the aforementioned source.
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