26/05/2004
NEWS STORY
A brief article in British newspaper The Daily Telegraph suggests that Toyota could be on the verge of landing a ground-breaking sponsorship deal with software giant Microsoft, one of the world's most successful companies.
At a time when Formula One is searching for a replacement for tobacco, the involvement of a company such as Microsoft would be seen as a positive move, indeed during the days of the internet boom, many predicted that the industry was well placed to take over from tobacco. Then came the crash.
The Microsoft story comes at a time when it's widely believed that Toyota is on the verge of announcing that it has signed Ralf Schumacher as its number one driver for 2005, many within the pitlane convinced that the signing will be confirmed this weekend.
One man who might not take too kindly to Microsoft entering into a partnership with Toyota, is board member Helmut Panke, who happens to be chairman of BMW.