Following Honda's surprise decision to withdraw entirely from Formula One, Toyota has issued a statement confirming its intention to continue moving forward with its F1 programme.

Honda cited the difficult global economic context and a consequently lower number of car sales in its major markets to justify the decision, which brought about speculation that fellow Japanese manufacturer Toyota could also pull out of the sport for similar reasons.

However, underlining the wave of cost-cutting measures to be implemented - and with more to follow - Toyota has issued a statement which clearly indicates that its presence in Formula One will continue for the time being.

"Honda's decision is a pity for us as a Japanese team. However, we cannot comment more about their situation because this is an issue for Honda," the statement reads.

"Toyota is currently committed to succeeding in Formula One, and to reducing our costs.
We are contributing to the FOTA (Formula One Teams' Association) activities which will achieve significant cost reductions, whilst maintaining the spirit of the sport."

"We hope FOTA's proposals and activities will be given the widespread support they deserve as they provide the sound, stable base Formula One requires at this time," Toyota declared.

The press release should therefore put an end to any short-term speculation. The team recently confirmed to Racing-Live.com that it remains committed to Formula One until 2012.

However, Toyota is considering a return to endurance racing, a programme which could not co-exist with a Formula One team in the current economic situation.

Daniel BASTIEN
© CAPSIS International
source, Formula 1 : F1 Live, with F1-Live.com