Teams meet at Renault as deadline nears

(GMM) As evening fell at Silverstone on Thursday, team chiefs headed out onto the A43 bound for Renault's nearby Enstone headquarters.

At close of business on Friday, the FIA's latest deadline will expire, theoretically locking five of the rebel FOTA teams – Renault, McLaren, Toyota, BMW and Brawn – off the 2010 grid.

Also with Ferrari and the Red Bull teams controversially included on next year's entry list, many observers see the outcome of Friday's deadline as crucial to the seriousness of the alliance's threat to quit the sport over the dispute with Max Mosley.

The teams' Enstone meeting is to decide on a reply to the FIA president's newest offers to resolve the standoff.

"I really hope tomorrow there is good news," Fernando Alonso, who had planned to travel last weekend to Le Mans but ultimately did not, told reporters at Silverstone.

"I'm always optimistic and I really hope they find a solution, but I know that it is a critical moment and we have to be ready for all decisions," the Renault driver added.