If there was no F1, the FIA would be in serious trouble - Ecclestone

Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone declared that a Formula One breakaway series could be possible if a new Concorde Agreement remains unsigned. The rumour about a possible breakaway started at the Canadian Grand Prix where Ecclestone and the team principals had a meeting. Last week however, F1's most powerful man played down the suggestions of a breakaway threat in a letter to all FIA member clubs.

Only days after sending the letter to the FIA member clubs, Ecclestone declared to the British newspaper 'The Times' that until the Concorde Agreement is renewed, the teams are free to make their own decisions.

Ecclestone said: “What the FIA doesn’t have, which is the most important thing for them, is an agreement with the teams which they would have with a Concorde Agreement The teams can do what they like.

“At the moment what we are trying to do, to keep sponsors happy, is say we can’t break away, but it could well be that that will happen. There is no agreement between the teams and the FIA. There is a commercial agreement that has been signed by the teams and FOM, so the teams can do what they like.

Bernie continued by saying that the lack of an agreement isn’t good for F1’s commercial interests. “If you are a big, big organisation, you don’t know what decisions to take,” he said. “I am responsible to our shareholders, the teams and the manufacturers, who have an awful lot of money invested.

“Max is responsible to the people in wherever who have got no money invested and nor has the FIA got money invested – all they’ve got is money that comes from Formula 1. If there was no Formula 1, the FIA would be in serious trouble.”