With Honda having called it a day on its Formula 1 program, speculation has been rife as to who would step in to take on the cash-strapped outfit.

Prodrive chief David Richards has confirmed that he is contemplating a buy-out which would see him return as Team Principle - Richards manned the helm back in the BAR days before Honda decided to run its F1 team in-house.

Richards, who represents a team of investors including the Kuwait-based Investment Dar Company (who presently hold a 40 percent stake in Prodrive), is fully aware of the pitfalls of running a Formula 1 team in the current economic environment:

“When you sit down in the cold light of day and realise the liability you would be taking on, and the huge restructuring of staff and resources that will be needed, investors will have to think long and hard before taking a punt.

“You will have to bridge a big gap in finance, probably for three years, before balancing the accounts,” he said.

Though Richards and Prodrive have history with Honda F1, there’s no guarantee that their bid would be successful. Greek shipping tycoon Achilleas Kallakis and Force India boss Vijay Mallya are also reported to be considering a bid.

Richards certainly has the time on his hands, with Subaru having pulled out of World Rally, and has the experience required - having already run the show in previous years.

Honda Racing CEO Nick Fry explained that news relating to the Honda F1 team buy-out would be released in the New Year. We’ll keep you posted once we’ve got more information, so stay tuned.