Sports
New twist in F1 tug-of-war
Published 09 July, 2009, 11:30
The ongoing Formula One confrontation over budget-capping has taken a new twist after the eight members of the Team Association – FOTA – walked out of a meeting with the sport’s governing body the FIA.
The meeting in Germany was held to discuss the rules for the next season and avoid FOTA from carrying out its threat to form a breakaway series. FOTA is made up of teams Ferrari, McLaren, BMW Sauber, Renault, Toyota, Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Brawn GP.
The teams present at the meeting staged a walkout when they were told they had no right to vote because of their failing to enter next year’s championship.
All teams must sign a legally binding agreement to reduce costs to the levels of the early 1990s, which as of yet has not happened.
“The eight FOTA teams were invited to attend the meeting to discuss their further proposals for 2010. Unfortunately, no discussion was possible because FOTA walked out of the meeting,” said an FIA representative.
The revived row poses new threats for the sport, which comes just weeks after the sides seemingly overcame their differences over the proposed budget-capping.
