Briatore turns to online auction for next manager

QPR's playboy owner Flavio Briatore plans to bid for his next manager on an online auction site.

Flavio Briatore, QPR's gregarious owner, parted ways with his sixth manager in two-and-a-half years this week with Paul Hart the latest coach to join the dole queue. The playboy Italian, who recently overturned a lifetime ban from the Formula 1 authorities, will now scour online auction sites in search of a replacement.

A source close to the former Renault F1 boss said he had commandeered the QPR youth team, who are now manning PCs in the basement of his mansion, monitoring online auction sites and waiting for someone with top level coaching experience to be auctioned off.

Briatore has heard that online auctions are offering all kinds of top prizes these days from DVD players to dates with underwear models and he is confident that it will only be a matter of time before bids open on the right candidate.

One lucky punter on the online auction site MadBid picked up a brand new Mini for £6.83 recently, which has convinced Briatore that he can avoid expensive compensation payments and agent fees by putting his steely nerve to the test against the online auction community.

The next time an out-of-work football manager is up for grabs, Briatore plans to get bidding. He is confident that he has the staying power, the patience and the bravado it takes to win even the most competitive online auction.

There's no sign of QPR's next manager among the live auctions currently running on MadBid. However, if Briatore fancies flexing his bidding muscles he could land himself a Phillips Wake Up Light, a Nintendo Wii or a Samsung 46" Ultra Slim TV for up to 90 per cent off their retail value. Briatore isn't short a bob or two, but you don't get rich by spending all your money so some of these treats might just tempt him and will provide some useful bidding practice.