FOTA on verge of collapse (3rd Update)
It emerged recently that, with top teams Red Bull and Ferrari already departed, membership fees were going unpaid and the exit of FOTA chiefs Martin Whitmarsh and Eric Boullier could drive the final nails in the coffin.
The Telegraph reported that there were disputes about the group's purpose, years on from the volatile Max Mosley era and breakaway series threats.
Now, on Friday, FOTA was formally disbanded.
Secretary general Oliver Weingarten confirmed the news, saying the "changing political and commercial landscape" had caused the decision.
"The teams will probably think they can exist and fight their own corner but there will be something when they will realize they will be stronger in numbers," he lamented in an interview with the Associated Press.
"There is a crisis around the corner — whether on the track, with the impact of the new regulations, whether on the governance side, or on the commercial side," Weingarten warned.
02/27/14 Word is that FOTA will cease to exist Friday. If it actually happens it says a lot about the politics of F1.
02/17/14 (GMM) The F1 teams group FOTA, once a powerful and influential alliance, is on the verge of collapse.
That is the claim of the Telegraph newspaper, revealing that with membership fees already going unpaid, the absence of FOTA chairman Martin Whitmarsh could now be the final straw.
Not only that, deputy FOTA chairman Eric Boullier, who has moved from Lotus to McLaren over the winter, "is expected to step back from any prominent role" with the association, correspondent Daniel Johnson claimed.
A source told Johnson that FOTA, now with just 7 of the 11 teams on its books, is also facing "substantial" financial problems, as members baulk at paying up due to disputes about the group's purpose.
Bob Fernley, the deputy team boss at Force India, said losing Red Bull and Ferrari was a key moment for FOTA.
"I don't think there's any question about that one," he admitted, "but we can't undo where we are today."
02/15/14 The Formula One Teams' Association could collapse before "the end of the month", according to a report in the British press.
Formed in 2008, FOTA's initiative was to put the teams' interests first, speaking as one voice.
However, as the years have gone by, FOTA's influence has lessened to the point that it only comprises seven teams after the likes of Ferrari and Red Bull withdrew.
According to the Telegraph, FOTA "faces unpaid subscription fees, deadlock among the 11 teams about its purpose, and the loss of its chairman and principal cheerleader.
"Sources at FOTA said it is suffering "substantial" financial problems, and had until the end of the month to determine whether the body has a future."
FOTA's general secretary, Oliver Weingarten, told the newspaper: "I can confirm that the teams have met in discussion as to how to potentially restructure the association and continue and further the engagement with the non-members, who have benefited from FOTA activities over the last 12 months."