FIA, F1 teams agree ‘cost savings’
The parties, represented by Max Mosley for the FIA and Ferrari's Luca di Montezemolo and Toyota's John Howett for FOTA, met in Geneva.
"FOTA are working urgently on further proposals for 2010 and thereafter," an extremely brief joint statement added.
No further details were provided.
10/20/08 Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo traveled to Switzerland on Tuesday for talks with Max Mosley on the motorsport chief's cost-cutting proposals for Formula One.
Montezemolo, who represents the newly founded Formula One Teams Association, was accompanied by Toyota's John Howett.
Several F1 teams, including McLaren and BMW Sauber, said last weekend they oppose Mosley's idea for standardized engines and chassis parts as a means of reducing costs during the global economic crisis.
German magazine Auto Motor und Sport reported that the proposals caught teams by surprise, prompting them to cancel their participation in the Geneva meeting and send Montezemolo in their place to show a united front.
The Italian was expected to present Mosley with an alternative cost-cutting plan, which could include longer engine lives and a $6.7 million cap on the cost of engines supplied to smaller teams.
Mosley had described the sport's combined $1.6 billion spending in 2008 as "unsustainable," saying the teams were relying too heavily on the goodwill of rich individuals and corporate sponsors.
"There is now a real danger that, in some cases, these subsidies will cease," Mosley said in a statement Monday. "This could result in a reduction in the number of competitors, adding to the two team vacancies we already have and reducing the grid to an unacceptable level." .