丰田汽车将退出F1赛事

丰田汽车是继本田汽车后第二家退出F1赛事的日本大型汽车商

　　一位知情人士周三说，丰田汽车(Toyota Motor)正打算退出一级方程式赛车赛(F1)，这是这项全球热门赛事遭受的最新打击。
　　Toyota Motor Corp. is planning to leave Formula One motor racing, a person close to the Japanese auto maker said Wednesday, in the latest blow to the popular global sport.

　　这位知情人士说，预计丰田汽车周三晚些时候会在日本召开新闻发布会，宣布这一决定。今年的F1赛季刚刚在上个周末结束。
　　Toyota is expected to call a press conference in Japan later today to announce the decision, which follows the end of this year's racing season this past weekend, the knowledgeable person said.

　　目前还不清楚丰田汽车决定退出的具体原因。但目前丰田汽车在美国和其他主要市场的汽车销量急剧下滑，该公司正艰难应对亏损状况。运营一只F1赛车车队需要巨额费用，每年需要投入至多数亿美元。
　　The exact reason for the move wasn't immediately clear. But it comes at a time when Toyota is struggling with losses following the collapse of car sales in the U.S. and other major markets. Running a Formula One racing team is extremely expensive, costing as much as hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

　　丰田汽车这一预期举动可能会给F1赛事的未来带来沉重打击；宝马汽车(BMW AG)和本田汽车(Honda Motor)最近几个月已经先后退出了这一赛事，因为全球汽车销量的疲软现状迫使他们削减成本。F1还一直面临着参赛车队不断减少、内耗不断以及环保形像糟糕等问题。
　　Toyota's expected announcement could deal a major blow to the future of Formula One, which in recent months has also seen BMW AG and Honda Motor Co. leave the sport to cut costs amid sluggish global auto sales. Formula One also has been suffering from declining attendance, internal power struggles and a poor environmental image.

　　虽然在美国是一项小众运动，但F1已经将自身打造成为了国际赛车运动的顶级赛事，在欧洲、中东和亚洲吸引了庞大的电视观众。这使得F1比赛成为了一项巨大的业务，每年吸引总计数十亿美元的赞助费和电视转播费。
　　Although a marginal sport in the U.S., Formula One has established itself as the pinnacle of international motor racing and attracts huge television audiences in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. That has made it a big business, with sponsorship and television deals totaling billions of dollars.