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Formula 1 in turmoil, all major manufacturers break away

Posted by Hootan Mahallati | June 19, 2009 | In motorsports news

Those of you who follow Formula 1 know that for months, major manufacturers, who are not happy with the rules and regulations set in place by the FIA, have been threatening to create a break-away series.

FOTA, or Formula One Teams Association, includes all the major names, namely Ferrari, McLaren, Toyota, Renault, BMW, Brawn, Red Bull, Toro Rosso, and it has announced that it will indeed compete in a separate series next year. The following is an excerpt from the FOTA announcement:

"The teams cannot continue to compromise on the fundamental values of the sport and have declined to alter their original conditional entries to the 2010 World Championship.

"These teams therefore have no alternative other than to commence the preparation for a new Championship which reflects the values of its participants and partners. This series will have transparent governance, one set of regulations, encourage more entrants and listen to the wishes of the fans, including offering lower prices for spectators worldwide, partners and other important stakeholders.

"The major drivers, stars, brands, sponsors, promoters and companies historically associated with the highest level of motorsport will all feature in this new series."

Within hours of the announcement, the FIA sued FOTA, with a particularly scathing attack on Ferrari, stating:

"The actions of FOTA as a whole, and Ferrari in particular, amount to serious violations of law including willful interference with contractual relations, direct breaches of Ferrari's legal obligations and a grave violation of competition law."

Williams, Force India, and several new teams are planning on staying with Formula 1, but it is hard to see a stripped Formula 1 series being as interesting as the FOTA series. For now, we have to wait and see what happened to CART and IRL happen to Formula 1.

We really would like to know what you think of this development, and whether you would continue watching a new FOTA racing series.

Here is the full press release from the FOTA.

[Sources: Autocar and Autoblog]

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