The boss of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne Ron Walker has said that Bernie Ecclestone was "quite offended" by comments made about him by Melbourne mayor Robert Doyle, and believes that Australia is in danger of losing their GP.
A prolonged war of words over the future of the Melbourne event has sprung up, after Doyle suggested in a newspaper article that it may be time for Albert Park to give up the race after 2015 due to rising costs.
Ecclestone called the bluff of the mayor by suggesting that he would be happy to discuss a termination of the race's contract.
The mayor called the F1 oligarch "cranky" in his column, to which Ecclestone later responded: "If the mayor thinks I'm cranky I can probably ... help him by proving it."
And although Walker has attempted to cool down the tensions by re-asserting himself as the man responsible for making the final decision on the race, rather than Doyle, he has admitted that Ecclestone was "offended" by Doyle's comments.
"He was quite offended by those remarks and even though he has very good friends here, and is very proud of Melbourne attendances, he has many other options," Walker told the Herald Sun newspaper this week.
He added: "[Ecclestone] doesn't want people to insult the brand."
Walker suggested that the future of the race is still in peril, given the queue of other countries wanting to join the GP schedule.
"I think he feels let down that a mayor of a capital city for the first time in 40 odd years would question the value of an F1 race," Walker said with regards to Ecclestone's position.
"A race that is equal in value to a World Cup or Olympic Games."
He added: "He will make up his mind in 2014...there's no shortage of people who want a race."
Albert Park has hosted the Australian Grand Prix since 1996, but the race has recently begun to make a significant loss over the course of the race weekend.
Walker, though, has insisted that the extra financial benefits of holding the race for the city as a whole more than makes up for the weekend losses.
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