Ecclestone 'pulls plug' on Spa GP
Bernie Ecclestone
Ecclestone had seemed keen to preserve the race
The Belgian Grand Prix at Spa has been cancelled after Bernie Ecclestone pulled out of a bid to try to promote the race, say reports in Belgium.
Formula One chief Ecclestone had been in talks to take over promoting the race after its promoters went bankrupt.
A former local government minister told politicians that sources close to Ecclestone had confirmed the news.
The cancellation leaves little time for track improvements to take place before the proposed race date of 17 September.
Initially, Ecclestone had seemed enthusiastic to save the race, saying "we need to keep Spa alive, don't we?".
If the race is dropped, the 2006 season would be trimmed to 18 races.