“They were ninth, and I suppose the board were sitting there listening to stories they have heard for the last six years that they are going to win the world championship next year.

“I suppose that has got a lot to do with it, but I think the prospects of Honda being bought are okay.”

“Next season could be difficult because nobody knows how serious the world financial crisis is going to be,” added FIA President Max Mosley, who intends to shave a massive £800 million off the total expenditure of the sport's teams over the next year partly through the introduction of a standardised engine and gearbox, and hopes that Honda's decision will force other outfits to recognise that changes need to be made.

“The moment where we can make really massive reductions is from 2010, but we have to get through 2009 first. We need a root-and-branch revision on costs.

“Just look at the wheel nuts. One of the teams is using 1,000 wheel nuts per year, but they only use them once because they are ultra-light, and they cost £800 each. That is just completely unnecessary.

“I would expect a team to be able to run in the £30-40 million bracket. If we can do that, then a combination of what they get from television and central rights, and what they can get from sponsors, should make the teams viable.

“We can get the costs down to the region we are talking about, and it can be done without the man in the grandstand or on television noticing any difference at all.”