‘Marussia chasing Sauber merge’

Marussia could merge with Sauber leaving just ten teams on the 2014 Formula One grid, claims a report in the German media…

Marussia could merge with Sauber leaving just ten teams on the 2014 Formula One grid, claims a report in the German media.

According to Auto Moto und Sport, Marussia – like many of their rivals – are struggling and face a budget of “76 million euros.”

The team’s Russian owners are keen to merge with another team and, having failed in a bid to do so with Williams, have targeted Sauber.

Journalist Michael Schmidt claims that “chief Andrei Cheglakov is reportedly fed up with needing to dig deep into his own pockets only to be down the field but he still wants to remain in Formula 1.

“He tried to buy Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff’s shares at Williams, that’s around 15 percent.

“Bernie Ecclestone is said to have endorsed the deal but Claire Williams rejected it as Williams want to remain independent.”

The report continued claiming that Marussia have now set their sights on “joining forces” with Sauber, who are “looking for new sponsors and partners on the Russian market.”