More money to come available for privateers

Formula One's surviving trio of independently-funded teams look set to receive more money under the provisions of a newly-negotiated Concorde Agreement. The announcement is a consequence of a deal between Ecclestone and the GPWC that included the demand of more income to go to the teams.

Meanwhile, Peter Sauber - the most competitive of the trio including Minardi and Jordan - insisted that 'not only the small' teams need better financing: 'At the moment,' said the Swiss, 'F1 is a very expensive sport. On the financial side, I hope we can improve on this part.'

Last month, a dispute between F1 carmakers, Bernie Ecclestone and rights-owning banks was settled in the promise of more money for all Formula One stakeholders.

British media reports insist that the new deal could see up to $20 million more in the pockets of each Formula One team from 2008 onwards.

Moreover, cash-strapped Minardi principal Paul Stoddart told Autosport that something may be on the horizon as early as the first portion of this New Year. Together with announcing financial security for his team in 2004, he added: 'The only way to improve the performance of smaller teams is to make sure they have a bigger slice of the revenue, as is done in most other sports.'