Richard Branson's Virgin Group has made a bid for the Honda Formula One team, a source close to the Japanese manufacturer told Reuters on Tuesday.
‘They have made a bid to purchase the team,’ said the source, who declined to be identified.
A spokeswoman for Branson declined to comment, saying the Virgin Group was ‘constantly named in speculation and rumour’.
‘We do not comment on speculation,’ added a Honda team spokeswoman.
If confirmed, the offer could scupper a planned management buyout being led by the team's current chief executive Nick Fry, principal Ross Brawn and three other senior Honda Racing executives.
With the Formula One season due to start in Australia on 29 March and time running out for a rescue of the team, a decision by the Japanese manufacturer is likely by the end of the month and possibly within days.
Honda put their team up for sale in December after announcing they were withdrawing from Formula One as a constructor and engine supplier due to the global credit crunch.
The decision left the career of British driver Jenson Button in limbo while also threatening the jobs of the team's 700 employees.
The British entrepreneur has been involved with Formula One before to a minor extent, his Virgin Mobile company sponsoring the Jordan team in 2002.
Virgin Atlantic Japan have also been personal sponsors of Honda-backed Japanese driver Takuma Sato for the past four years.
