Russian F1 team 'not far off' - Ross Brawn

Ross Brawn can imagine there being a Russian team on the Formula 1 grid.

At Sochi, Russia's trade minister said a Russian F1 team is "not far off". The man closest to making that happen is Boris Rotenberg, the billionaire behind the SMP Racing operation.

'Prerequisites already there'

"I think the more teams there are, the more opportunities there will be for our drivers," he said.

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"We have a quite strong presence in F1 of Russian drivers, businessmen and entrepreneurs," Brawn, F1's sporting boss, told Tass news agency.

"There is also a Russian race, so all the prerequisites (for a F1 team) are there already," he added.