Autosport has reported that Max Mosley is meeting FOTA representatives today in a last minute attempt to reach agreement over the F1 rules for 2010. This is very likely to end in a compromise that ensures the continuation of the sport as we know it with an entry list that includes the FOTA teams and the most viable of the aspiring new entrants (my bet is USF1, Lola and Prodrive). Extracts from Mosley's latest letter make it clear that there is little separating the two sides now and it would be foolish not to take those few steps necessary to reach agreement.
Max Mosley
The significant break in the deadlock actually occurred yesterday with a statement from Ferrari's Stefano Domenicali. This was in response to legal threats from both Mosley and Bernie Ecclestone and it made clear that the Scuderia was not intimidated and would not compete in F1 if it did not want to:
As always, we will do all we can to find a solution that is acceptable to all parties. If this is not possible, then the FIA will not be able to include Ferrari in the list of teams entered for the 2010 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.
The bluff was called, in effect. Most telling of all was that the announcement was made by Domenicali, not Luca di Montezemolo, and that Stefano will also be Ferrari's representative at the meeting today, along with Toyota's John Howett and Christian Horner of Red Bull. Since Luca is the man with the final say, this means that Ferrari's position has already been decided and Domenicali instructed in just how far he can go and what concessions he can make.
Despite Mosley's assertions that F1 does not need Ferrari, both he and Ecclestone know that is not true; it is the one team whose presence or otherwise could have a major effect on F1 income. Domenicali's statement effectively ended all the posturing and Mosley has been brought to the negotiating table.
There are three important concessions apparent in Mosley's letter. The first and the most important is that he is now talking in terms of a budget cap as high as 100 million Euros, with a commitment to bring that figure down to 45 million Euros in 2011. That is very close to what FOTA has been suggesting, especially if we include the second important change in Mosley's stance: a renaming of the cost cap.
It may seem a cosmetic alteration in wording, but the fine point actually indicates a willingness to escape the need for some form of audit on the teams' finances. Were it changed to "agreed guidelines", for instance, the cost ceiling would become a matter of honor rather than FIA inspection and that is all FOTA has been asking for.
Finally, Mosley has given broad agreement to the institution of a new Concorde Agreement based essentially on the version proposed by the teams. In the long term, this will go some way towards mending the governance of F1, another major factor in FOTA's stand against Mosley's original proposals for the 2010 regulations.
If Max honors the concessions he has made, it really ought to be possible to hammer out an agreement today. The sole fly in the ointment may prove to be Ferrari's unwritten agenda of getting rid of Mosley himself. I cannot see Luca holding out for this, however, and so I quite confidently expect an end to the war to be announced later today. We can breathe a little easier, I think.
There remains a strong possibility that one or more of the manufacturer teams may still withdraw from F1 at the end of the year. Renault's recent statements have been quite aggressive in demanding a greater share in revenue, something Bernie is not prepared to consider at the moment. With Renault's commitment to the sport always a little dubious, it would be no surprise to see the team end its involvement and to become an engine supplier only.
Toyota have made it clear in the last week or so that they want to continue in the sport if at all possible. This makes sense when the improvement in the team's fortunes this year is taken into account, together with the cutback in costs that F1 will see in the near future.
Hopefully we are watching the final act of the political drama that has brought F1 into such disrepute this year. All of the parties involved are agreed that the squabble has been detrimental to the sport and so we, the fans, must insist that their differences be healed today. We are sick of our sport being so badly handled and demand that its future be secured for the benefit of all.
And, please, Mr Mosley, do not even think of standing for another term...