Arden gears up for Russian F1 advance.

Arden Team Russia could be the next outfit knocking on the door of Formula One, after taking second place in Saturday's F3000 GP support race.

The Lukoil-backed operation has high hopes of being involved in any future F1 project in Russia, as the country moves closer to having grand prix standard facilities. A podium finish at Silverstone was its best ever result, and marked another step on Arden's climb up the racing ladder.

''Lukoil has made a big investment with few results, so this result was really needed,'' admitted team director Alexander Trebich, ''We know that it will take time to develop a culture of driving and technical skill in Russia, but this team gives people something to look up to. It made sense to develop a Russian team here in England - the centre of motor racing. We wanted to do this in a European way, but Russia is a massive market, and has massive potential for teams and races,''

Although the team is primarily made up of British engineers and management, with just Trebich and driver Viktor Maslov representing the eastern European contingent, it has already built up a large following in one of racing's less prominent outposts. Its Lolas are emblazoned with the Russian flag and the gold, two-headed eagle crest of the tsars, which looked good in close company with driver Darren Manning's runners-up trophy at Silverstone.

''We're like the Russian national team,'' laughed Manning, ''and it's great to have an entire country behind you.''

Trebich makes no joke about his ambitions to take the team into Formula One, and hopes to do so by the time the grand prix circus finally makes space on the calendar for his home country, but admits that the latter is more of a certainty at present than the former.

''I don't know how soon, or if it will be with us, but Formula One will happen in Russia,'' he says, ''We have a mission to show people what we can do.''