Circuit of Wales organizers "submitted a new funding proposal to the Welsh Government, which could lead to the construction of MotoGP's future home in Britain commencing this year," according to Jack Benyon of MOTORSPORT. The project, first unveiled in '11, secured permission to purchase land in Ebbw Vale, in the Blaenau Gwent county, in Nov. '15, but received a "major setback" last April when the Welsh Government confirmed it would not underwrite it, "forcing the owners back to the drawing board." Circuit of Wales signed a five-year deal to host MotoGP in the U.K. from '15 through '19. In July, Welsh Assembly Member and Cabinet Secretary for Economy & Infrastructure Ken Skates clarified that "to consider helping to fund the project, Circuit of Wales needed to secure private sector funding" for 50% of the project, taking on 50% of the risk. In a statement released on Wednesday, Skates said that the Heads of the Valleys Development Company, which is responsible for building the circuit, submitted a new deal that "includes the names of the private investors and which they assert meets the criteria I set out in July." The Welsh Government will now "conduct due diligence and evaluate the new proposal before it gives the circuit the green light." The Circuit of Wales also issued a statement confirming that its new proposal meets the criteria set out by the Welsh Government (MOTORSPORT, 2/8).
