The financially-troubled USF1 team has apparently asked the FIA for the right to defer their proposed entry onto the grid until the 2011 season, in a move that will see them pay the governing body a "seven figure sum" as a guarantee.
With talks of a merger between the American team and the Stefan GP Serbian outfit apparently having collapsed, and the USF1 team already having admitted that they would have to miss at least the first four races of the season, the latest reports from America suggests that the American team are now looking to skip the 2010 season completely.
According to a report from Speed TV in the United States, team co-founder Ken Anderson and YouTube founder Chad Hurley have offered a "substantial, seven-figure" bond to the FIA as part of a guarantee that they would race in 2011.
FIA technical advisor Charlie Whiting visited the USF1 headquarters in Charlotte last week, where apparently the team bosses admitted that they would not be able to compete in 2010 at all.
Should USF1 skip the 2010 season, there would be a place on the grid freed up for the Stefan GP team. Though whether or not there would be a spot for USF1 in 2010 would presumably depend on one of the current 13 teams dropping out at some point in 2010.
Meanwhile, further reports from America suggest that the USF1 team had signed former Honda development driver James Rossiter alongside Jose Maria Lopez for 2010, but despite having the signatures of two sponsor-heavy drivers for the new season, the team was still unable to complete their 'Type 1' car on time.
A Speed TV report suggests that the two drivers would have brought $16 million to the team between them, but claim that Rossiter pulled out of his contract in early February when the issues with the team's progress first became apparent.
Rossiter has since signed up for a full-time IndyCar drive.
Lopez, USF1's other driver, looks set to miss out on a race seat in 2010, with the Argentine set to miss out on a drive with Campos next season.
Lopez's father was quoted by the Argentine media as saying: “This is a great disappointment for us, because we were sold a seat that was not there."
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