Caterham team on brink of failure

Even if an administrator held out some hope that the team might survive, time was running out with a Saturday deadline looming for the cars to be sent to Texas for next week's US Grand Prix in Austin and then on to Brazil.

"Everybody is prepared to go to Austin, the problem is that if the administrators are not changing their mind then it is difficult," team advisor Colin Kolles told reporters in a conference call.

Finbarr O'Connell, one of the administrators appointed to sort out the mess at the Leafield factory, told Reuters various parties had approached him to express interest either in the assets or keeping Caterham racing as an F1 team.

He made clear, however, that the cars could not leave without his agreement -- something that looked unlikely on Thursday with Kolles wishing him good luck "in Dreamland".