FIA approves Haas candidature to enter F1

A new Formula One team, directed by NASCAR team owner Gene Haas has been permitted an entry to F1 in 2015, Haas and the FIA confirmed on Friday following a meeting of the World Motorsport Council at Morocco.

Haas, who jointly owns the Stewart-Haas NASCAR team confirmed in a statement that the FIA officially allowed him an entry into F1 for 2015. Haas sought approval with the FIA following a tender in which each candidate has to ensure they have the technical and financial capacity to run a Formula One team.

New 2015 entrants would be able to exploit the relaxed regulations on intellectual property sharing between F1 teams. In reality this could enable Haas to buy nearly everything from existing F1 teams, except for the chassis and the bodywork. Given Haas' existing links with Ferrari, it may be the Scuderia will be delivering several parts to the new team.

"Obviously, we're extremely pleased to have been granted a Formula 1 licence by the FIA," Haas said. "It's an exciting time for me, Haas Automation and anyone who wanted to see an American team return to Formula 1.

"Now, the really hard work begins. It's a challenge we embrace as we work to put cars on the grid. I want to thank the FIA for this opportunity and the diligence everyone put forth to see our licence application come to fruition."

While Haas hopes to announce more information soon, the FIA also reported that another team by the name of Forza Rossa is still being considered.

Ecclestone hinted one week ago, at the Bahrain Grand Prix, that F1 could well see two new entrants, and that he was no longer opposed to having 13 teams in Formula One, despite his earlier push to reduce F1 back to 10 teams.

In the short statement, the FIA however failed to include information on why it is still considering Forza Rossa now that Haas Formula LLC has been accepted, and what are the reasons that induce "further investigations".