Australian Grand Prix to start later

MELBOURNE, Australia -- The Australian Grand Prix will start later in 2009 in a bid to avoid losing its place in the Formula One calendar.

Australian Grand Prix Corporation chairman Ron Walker announced on Monday that next year's race would start at 5:00 pm in an attempt to satisfy Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

Ecclestone has threatened to deprive Australia of the race when the track's current contract expires in 2010 -- unless organizers agree to stage the Grand Prix at night, so European television audiences can see it live at a reasonable hour.

Walker said there was no chance that their financial backer, the Victoria state government, could meet the cost of running it under lights, estimated at $38 million to install.

The best Walker could offer was the later start.

"Let's clear the air and say that compromise is the art of good business, and we have made a huge compromise in terms of what Mr Ecclestone wants," Walker told a press conference.

"I think Mr Ecclestone is a very fair person actually and probably one of the greatest sports promoters in the world today and he understands how we run the sport.

"I believe we've gone a long way to appeasing Mr Ecclestone's aims to increase the TV audiences worldwide and I believe we will achieve that by the 5:00 pm start."

Ecclestone is expected to talk to Victorian premier John Brumby over the next week but Walker said the sprawling Albert Park venue made it impossible to stage the race under lights.

"We've got 300 hectares (740 acres) of land here," he said. "It's just not lighting of the track here, it's lighting the whole park to protect our patrons."

Ecclestone is keen for Australia to follow the example of Singapore, which will stage the first-ever F1 night race on September 28.

But Walker said : "It's different because they are doing a night race in the city of Singapore itself."

The start of next Sunday's race has been moved from its traditional 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm (0430 GMT) so more European fans can watch live television coverage.

Walker said if the later start time boosted international viewing numbers, then it would be pushed back further to 5:00 pm in 2009.

"All this can be achieved without any additional infrastructure costs." E-mail to a friend