Formula One: Mexican billionaire rescues Honda

ROME: Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, the world's second richest man, has rescued the Honda Formula One team, Italian newspaper La Stampa reported on Saturday.

"The saviour has arrived: Carlos Slim, 67 years old, the second richest man in the world," said the newspaper.

"The news is not official as all the details have yet to be formalised. But two things are certain - the team has been saved and the drivers will be Jenson Button and rookie Bruno Senna in place of Rubens Barrichello."

Honda, believed to have an annual racing budget of around 400 million dollars, announced earlier this month that they were pulling out of Formula One as a result of the global financial meltdown.

La Stampa, which did not identify the source of its story, added that Bruno Senna, the nephew of former triple world champion Ayrton Senna, is sponsored by Embratel, part of Slim's Telmex group.