Honda on Thursday said it had no plans to bail out cash-strapped Japanese Formula 1 team Super Aguri, whose future is in serious jeopardy.

The Japanese carmaker, which provides engines and technical support, made the comment after Britain's Magma Group announced it was pulling out of a deal to buy the struggling team.

"We intend to continue the present structure of our support for Super Aguri," a spokesperson for Honda told AFP.

He added there had been no request from Super Aguri for a financial rescue package despite press reports it was calling for assistance from Honda, which has its own separate team.

Founded in late 2005 by former Japanese F1 driver Aguri Suzuki, Super Aguri is now a major doubt to make the grid for the next grand prix in Spain on 27 April.

It was announced last month that Magma Group, a British motor industry consultant firm led by former Ford and Maserati executive Martin Leach, was in talks to acquire the team.

But Super Aguri said late on Wednesday they had been informed by Magma that "its investors no longer wish to fund the intended acquisition".

"It is with deep regret that Aguri Suzuki is now forced to consider the future of the team, however negotiations with other parties continue," the team said in a statement.

The BBC quoted Formula 1 commentator David Croft as saying that Magma's major investor, Dubai International Capital, could be "stalling to lower the price-tag for a buyout, which is worth around £50-million ($98.5-million)."

"The majority of that money goes to Honda F1 who have been building and supplying the cars for Super Aguri," he said.

"If Honda can be persuaded to lower the price then maybe a deal can be resurrected but the team need to find a solution fast."

The Honda spokesperson said: "We understand at the moment that the talks with Magma are over as the statement from the Aguri team says."

He denied that Super Aguri was forced to sit out testing in Barcelona this week for lack of funding. "From the beginning, they did not plan to take part in Barcelona tests."

The team is yet to score any points after three races. Their drivers, Briton Anthony Davidson and Japan's Takuma Sato, both failed to finish in the opening race in Australia. Their best result was Davidson's 15th place in Malaysia.

Last year, Super Aguri won just four points in the constructors' championships — an improvement on their pointless debut season — to finish second-last.

Headed by Suzuki, who was the first Asian on an F1 podium when he finished third at the 1990 Japanese Grand Prix, Super Aguri initially had all-Japanese constructors, engine and tyre suppliers and drivers, Sato and Yuki Ide.

But Ide was stripped of his F1 licence for lack of skill after four races and was replaced by Frenchman Franck Montagny.

In 2007, Hong Kong-based oil and gas trading firm SS United Group became Super Aguri's title sponsor but defaulted on sponsorship payments.

Recurring financial problems forced the team to skip most of winter testing this year.

There had been pre-season talk that an Indian consortium led by the Spice Group telecom company was interested in buying into the team, but only if Indian driver Narain Karthikeyan was in the cockpit.

AFP