Formula 1
Reactions to F1 summit meeting
Although nothing concrete came out of yesterday's meetings it seems progress was made and there is something still to talk about.
Published: May 23, 2009, 7:09 AM
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Although nothing concrete came out of yesterday's meetings it seems progress was made and there is something still to talk about. Everyone seems to have calmed down and there was no more talk of Ferrari leaving the sport following the meetings.
The boss of the Monaco Grand Prix, Michel Boeri, however did have something to say on the subject: "What would the Monaco Grand Prix be without Ferrari? A catastrophe. Like the Cannes Film Festival without the stars."
Picking up more details of how things are moving, it seems that the teams are pushing to have a more gradual reduction in costs than a straight £40 million budget cap with immediate effect. For many teams it will cost tens of millions to lay off hundreds of employees and that is a major concern. But the idea is to get to that level over two years without the intrusiveness of the budget cap.
Here are some quotes from the key players that I have managed to gather,
Montezemolo: "What we want is that F1 stays F1, that we don't keep changing things which disorientates the public. We want things to stabilise and over the next two years move to a real reduction in costs."
Mosley: "It was a constructive meeting but the discussion goes on. The problems are still the same. We've made a little progress and I'm hopeful we'll get an agreement."
Brawn: "It's not a situation which is going to be solved simply. But at this point I have to say I am more optimistic."
Briatore: " We want F1 to be the best it can be. We want it to be the pinnacle of motor sport, we can't run GP2 with F1, we have to give the public the best cars and the best drivers. But at this moment I don't feel a lot of energy in our sport, the public know that something isn't right."
Patrick Head: " The only two teams who don't want a budget cap are Toyota and Ferrari. But in the end they will find themselves isolated in a corner. Now that Ferrari has lost the law suit in Paris they will not be so rigid. I cannot imagine that it will move far from the £40 million. I have the impression that McLaren could be okay with the budget cap and also BMW will line up behind it."
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