Billionaire's Playset. Young, Rich American has planned to run his own F1 team by the start of the 1998 F1 season.
25-year-old Aaron-Mitchell Ross, who's riches come from becoming the first independant internet-service provider in the United States, AMR Konex, and the eventual billion dollar sale to America Online. Ross has been visiting each F1 venue on the 1996 F1 Calendar and expressed his interest in starting a team since the British Grand Prix, but was in debate with several advisors before making the announcement public, it is unsure whether Ross will build a team from scratch or buy one of the existing teams in the paddock.
Speaking with several journalists at the recent GP, Aaron-Mitchell Ross plans to start this team no sooner than 1998, and will look to be successful within ten years.
22nd August 1996 Edition of Autosport. (happy now ya pendant )
Last edited by ADx_Wales on 13 Aug 2010, 11:47, edited 1 time in total.
"The worst part of my body that hurt in the fire was my balls" Gerhard Berger on Imola 1989
Excerpts from a letter to an F1 fan from Aaron-Mitchell Ross:
Dear Mr. Fenicks.
Thankyou for your letter, technically it counts as the first "F1 Team" Mail to be sent, and also the first to get a reply, obviously this will become more difficult if, fingers-crossed, my dream becomes reality. Thanks for your very good questions, these have been on the lips of every journalist in the F1 paddocks around the world, but have been asked at a time when I've not been prepared to give a proper answer to, until now, and you will be the first to get the answers:
Q: You seem to be doing this as a personal hobby since you've earned millions, if not billions, in the sale of AMR Konex to America Online, How much do you know about F1 to actually take part?
Having watched F1 since 1978, watching Mario Andretti winning the championship, and have been hooked ever since, yes there were probably a couple of years where my interest lay in persuing a business career, but having made so much money and deciding to splash out on visiting all the F1 venues last year, it reinforced my interest in the greatest sport on earth, even though I could take the easy-option to enter Champcar, Indycar or NASCAR, which I've not really taken interest in, F1 has been my first love, and now I have the money to spend taking part in something I adore.
Q: Are you going to be building a new team from the ground-up, like Jackie Stewart did, or take-over a team in the same way as Alain Prost, and if you have decided on the latter, which team do you intend to buy?
Unfortunately building a team from the ground-up will cost too much money, especially in the States, Jackie Stewart came into F1 on the foundations of his British Formula 3 and F3000 team created during the late 80s/early 90s, so it's not like he's flying blind in F1, and you dont get second place at monaco flying blind. There are teams in America set up for such an operation, but are too focused on American based series, Taking over a team is the only viable option.
Having been discussing with my advisors and also with members of the "F1 Society", who have been rather acommodating to this "outsider", people like Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore have given me small chunks of advice, but then got sacked recently, maybe Benetton were getting concerned that Flavio may have been offering the team to me, which leads me to the teams that I have the "choice" of taking over for 1998.
Arrows
Tom Walkinshaw's plan this year backfired, yes he may have signed the 1996 world champion, but it was not enough, and is looking for extra money, if not a takeover with TW managing the team on race weekends, which could be a good start for a naive "yank" like me.
Minardi
Flavio was also looking to find a buyer for this team, they've been doing well this year, but their best driver Jarno Trulli has been standing in for Olivier Panis at Prost, as an underdog myself where better to take over ya think?
Tyrrel
Ken's finally given up and is looking for a buyer too, however Jacques Villeneuve wants a new team to himself, somehow, he's doing well just being a driver, why screw that up? I'm tempted because it's a historic team, but I would not want to tamper with all that history, I've been to Ken's "shed" and for some odd reason, call me a freak if you will, can sense the affection, the attention and the heart put into every car that Ken put onto an F1 track, why ruin it?
I've got the next 6 months to decide, wish me luck!
Aaron-Mitchell Ross.
Post-marked: 23rd June 1997.
"The worst part of my body that hurt in the fire was my balls" Gerhard Berger on Imola 1989
...Aaron-Mitchell Ross makes the announcement public.
Aaron-Mitchell Ross wrote:Hello Everyone, thanks for being here at this announcement, i'm grateful that your all taking an interest in this, whether you want me to succeed or not, there's probably some of you that want to see me fail, welcome to every single one of you.
You're all here to know who AMR will take over from 1998, and its not really going to come as a shock to some of those who interrogated most of the people involved in making the takeover possible, you bunch of spoilsports, but yes...
...Ken Tyrrel has agreed to me taking over the Tyrrell F1 team, I will let you ask your individual questions, but the most obvious question has to be answered:
The current staff at Tyrrel F1 can stay, if they want to, if anything we as a team will look to add more staff rather than replace.
As far as the driver lineup for 1998 goes, the deals with Riccardo Rosset and Tora Takagi will still go ahead.
The team WILL move to a new factory, Ken has asked for the original shed not to be tampered with, for obvious reasons, but we will find some kind of use for it in the years to come.
And more importantly, you will still see the team being called Tyrrell, but dont be suprised to see the "official" team name change within a few years.
...ok, any more questions?
"The worst part of my body that hurt in the fire was my balls" Gerhard Berger on Imola 1989
Is the team named not to honour the founder but rather in the vain hope to attract manufacturer backing from Aston Martin and have the initials then stand for Aston Martin Racing?
watka wrote:I find it amusing that whilst you're one of the more openly Christian guys here, you are still first and foremost associated with an eye for the ladies!
dinizintheoven wrote:GOOD CHRISTIANS do not go to jail. EVERYONE ON FORMULA ONE REJECTS should be in jail.
dr-baker wrote:Is the team named not to honour the founder but rather in the vain hope to attract manufacturer backing from Aston Martin and have the initials then stand for Aston Martin Racing?
Aaron-Mitchell Ross wrote: I Like the suggestion that Aston Martin Racing could be linked to Tyrrell because they share the same initials as me, but in all seriousness, Aston have not got a firm foot in the motorsport world at the moment, and its been 9 years since their last racing input via Group C racing, and the way Tyrrell have been going lately it doesn't suprise me that manufacturers have been looking elsewhere, If a new manufacturer wants in, then the new factory will hopefully support that effort, but its too early to start discussing deals for 1999, let alone the years to come.
The Tyrrell name WILL remain in honour of the founder, and I'm glad the man himself has agreed to that happening.
"The worst part of my body that hurt in the fire was my balls" Gerhard Berger on Imola 1989
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