Time is running out in 2010 regulation war

The clock is ticking for the current Formula One teams. Next Friday marks the deadline for 2010 entry submission, and many of the established teams have not yet joined. Apart from Williams they are all waiting for a major regulation change.

Only 5 months ago, FOTA was a strong partnership of teams, created to jointly defend their interests in the sport and aimed towards creating an outset for future regulations. Ferrari's Luca Di Montezemolo was appointed as president, while John Howett is vice-president. Initially that all worked out masterfully with constructive meetings between the teams, followed by discussions with the FIA.

Early in the winter season however, cracks showed up as Williams and Toyota showed up with diffuser designs that contravened the 'spirit of the rules'. Initially it wasn't such a big problem as those teams weren't really dominant, but when Brawn GP also came in, trouble arose at the horizon.

Rumours flew all over about teams willing to protest the new designs, and it was't until Friday practice at Melbourne that Ferrari, Renault and Red Bull protested the new designs. All of them, including a later one by BMW Sauber were rejected, leaving them no choice but to develop their own versions.

As of that time, one cannot talk of unity between the teams anymore. When the FIA then put its £40 million budget cap into the 2010 regulations, the teams were upset. Ferrari even lodged a court appeal without success and now still threatens to quit Formula One.

Max Mosley consequently put a meeting together with the teams and Bernie Ecclestone. Sources differ on the aim of that meeting, but it was cut by the teams so that they could first make a joint statement about the issue. Afterwards, Bernie Ecclestone appeared much less confident that Ferrari would remain in Formula One, while Patrick Head rued it as a missed opportunity. Renault's Flavio Briatore stated he was not going to accept to be put under time pressure by Max Mosley and hence called for the meeting to be cancelled.

During the Monaco GP, the team bosses came together in an attempt to resolve the troublesome but with little outcome. The teams did however send a letter to the FIA, stating that they would like to negotiate the 2010 regulations, but starting from the 2009 version.

So far, there is no reply from the FIA, but Williams, the much respected privateer team has lodged its 2010 entry yesterday, probably cracking up the FOTA even more. Brawn GP and Force India are expected to do the same before next Friday's deadline as they can only benefit from a budget limitation.

McLaren Mercedes might go the same route. The team has been very silent during the DDD row and are still under probation from the spy- and lie-gate rulings.

That leaves us to the question what Ferrari, Renault, Toyota and Red Bull are going to do. Renault and Flavio Briatore are still in an unclear position and may find it impossible to cut their budget radically during the next months. Flavio Briatore however may well be interested in a cost-limited formula, even if that would mean he needs to take ownership of the team.

Red Bull's two teams are also in troubled water and still feel bad about how the DDD row turned out against them. It is however believed that Red Bull's main issue with the budget cap is its extensive marketing campaign it has built around F1.

What Toyota and Ferrari will do if they get pushed into a corner is certainly not obvious, but Toyota's withdrawal was already on the table last year following its failure to get its first race wing.

Ferrari lastly is of great importance to Formula One, and they know it. Max Mosley on the other hand is stands firm in his belief that F1 can do without the prancing horse. I'm hopeful such proof will not be necessary.