Sports News

TOKYO (AP) -- Toyota-owned Fuji International Speedway has scrapped plans to host the 2010 Japanese Formula One Grand Prix and beyond due to a prolonged economic slump.

"It has become extremely difficult for us to host the F1 Grand Prix as we face the deteriorating economic environment and see few signs showing a swift economic recovery," Fuji Speedway said in a statement Tuesday.

Fuji Speedway, which is 93.4 percent owned by Toyota Motor Corp., hosted the Japanese Grand Prix in 2007 and 2008 for the first time in 30 years, replacing the Honda-owned Suzuka circuit, which is hosting the race this year.

It has not been decided whether Fuji's withdrawal means the F1 race is held at another venue in Japan next year, Fuji Speedway spokesman Keiichi Sato said.

"It is not clear at this moment whether the 2010 F1 will be hosted in Japan by others or be held in another country," Sato said.

The Fuji International circuit had been scheduled to alternate the race each year with the Suzuka circuit. A spokesman for Mobilityland Corp., a Honda subsidiary which operates the Suzuka circuit, declined to comment when asked about the prospect of hosting the 2010 race.

"We can only say we are currently working to host the F1 Grand Prix in October this year as well as 2011," said the spokesman, who declined to be named due to department policy.

Fuji Speedway said it was "deeply sorry" for the decision, arguing that continuing to host F1 races could threaten the survival of the company.

"It was a heart-wrenching decision to give up on hosting the F1 Japan Grand Prix just three years after we announced our hosting in 2006," Fuji Speedway president Hiroaki Kato said.

Toyota declined to comment on Fuji Speedway's withdrawal. But the world's biggest automaker said it would not quit Formula One racing. Toyota's rival, Honda Motor Co., announced last December it was pulling out of F1 racing to cut costs amid a downturn in the global economy.

Fuji Speedway's exit came as Toyota hoped to revive itself under the leadership of its new president, Akio Toyoda, who is the grandson of founder Kiichiro Toyoda. The 53-year-old Toyoda took the helm at the Japanese auto giant in June.

Toyoda has a daunting task to lead the battered automaker, which lost a staggering 436.94 billion yen ($4.6 billion) in the fiscal year ended March, its worst loss ever. The company is expecting more red ink this fiscal year.