Ecclestone reaches agreement with majority of teams

Ecclestone

Bernie Ecclestone has announced that he has reached agreement with “the majority" of Formula One’s teams over commercial terms post-2012, although Mercedes’ name was conspicuous by its absence in the statement released on Saturday by the sport’s chief executive.

After a week of speculation and intrigue, triggered by the leak of an unsigned version of the Concorde Agreement which appeared to suggest that Ferrari and Red Bull would be offered favorable terms in the post-2012 era, Ecclestone made the announcement on Formula One’s official website.

"I am very pleased to announce that we have reached commercial agreements with the majority of the current Formula One teams, including Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull Racing, about the terms on which they will continue competing in Formula One after the current Concorde Agreement expires at the end of this year," he said. The statement raises a number of questions. Which teams constitute the majority to which Ecclestone referred?

Have McLaren ‘agreed’ to the same version of the Concorde Agreement leaked last weekend or have they been able to secure more favorable terms in the interim?

And what are Mercedes' intentions? The Brackley-based team have been one of the most vocal supporters of the Formula One Teams Association, the umbrella group which was blown apart by the withdrawal of Ferrari and Red Bull in December. Guardian.co.uk