Saturday May 30, 2009
Ferrari pulling out of Formula One recedes
LONDON: The prospect of Ferrari pulling out of Formula One at the end of the year receded yesterday when the champions joined all the other teams in signing up conditionally for 2010.
A statement by the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) said all of their members had met a deadline imposed by the governing International Automobile Federation (FIA).
Ferrari, former champions Renault, Toyota and the two Red Bull teams had threatened to walk away if the 2010 regulations were not rewritten in a row over a proposed £40mil (US$64.14mil) budget cap.
FOTA, whose members met FIA president Max Mosley in Monaco last weekend, have been trying to find a solution to the standoff since the regulations were published last month.
Up for more: Kimi Raikkonen steering his Ferrari to third place during the Monaco Grand Prix on May 24. — AP The statement said all the teams would commit to 2012 providing key conditions were met.
They were, firstly, that a new version of the confidential Concorde Agreement between the teams, FIA and commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone, governing the sport be signed by all parties by June 12.
Secondly, the 2010 regulations will be based on the current 2009 rules “amended in accordance with proposals that FOTA has submitted to the FIA.”
FOTA said the entries were submitted on the understanding that all members would be allowed to compete in 2010 on an identical regulatory basis and that they could only be accepted as a whole.
“All FOTA teams now look forward with optimism to collaborating proactively and productively with the FIA, with a view to establishing a solid foundation on which the future of a healthy and successful Formula One can be built, providing lasting stability and sound governance,” added the statement.
FOTA said it had unanimously agreed “further and significant actions to substantially reduce the costs of competing in the championship in the next three years.”
It said this would create “a mechanism that will preserve the technological competition and the sporting challenge and, at the same time, facilitate the entry in the F1 Championship for new teams.” — Reuters
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