Friday March 1st, 2002

Formula One design guru and Prost creditor John Barnard has revealed his anger over the Nickerson consortium's capture of the team's entry into this year's World Championship.

Barnard, whose company B3 Technologies worked on the design of Prost's AP5 car before the team's collapse, is determined to get his money back if the team returns to the grid.

"We are one of many people owed," he said. "It seems the court blokes are completely bent.

"When you read that serious offers were made for the team and it has now all been sold for next to nothing -- there is something awfully smelly about this lot.

"We are a small company and we are owed a fair amount of money. From where I see it, it doesn't look kosher.

"We got letters from the administrators that effectively said 'put your claims in but don't hold your breath'.

"You read of these offers, and the Saudi Prince would have saved the team, but all that is buried and then up pops this little lot."

Barnard believes the situation is not acceptable and said that the team should not be allowed to continue.

He believes Minardi's Paul Stoddart, who plans to issue an injunction against Walkinshaw, is right to contest the deal.

"It cannot be legal," he said. "As far as we are concerned, Prost Grand Prix is liquidated and they held the entry.

"And if it carries on as Prost Grand Prix that cannot be legal because it means they are still in operation and all of us who are owed money will go after them.

"People like Stoddart are big hitters so I don't think he will let it rest. We will just put in our claim and wait to see what happens."

But after Prost team spokeswoman Virginie Papin revealed any court battle with Paul Stoddart is unlikely to succeed, it appears the team will be given the go-ahead.

And Barnard believes that if the takeover is accepted then the team should be able to make it onto the grid quickly, despite Ferrari's decision not to supply the new team with engines.

"It could be done," he said. "You can bolt engines into a car relatively quickly and that is, I think, where Tom Walkinshaw figures he's going to be able to help out. That's where I see the connection."

Published at 15:49:33 GMT