Formula One plunged deeper into crisis on Friday with Ferrari taking legal action in France to try to prevent the governing body from pressing ahead with plans for a budget cap next year.
International Automobile Federation (FIA) president Max Mosley, taking a hardline stance, told reporters after a two hour meeting with the teams at a Heathrow hotel that there had been no compromise on the controversial regulations.
Champions Ferrari, the sport’s most successful and glamorous team, have said they would bring down the curtain on 60 years of involvement in Formula One if the published rules are not re-written.
Mosley doubted they would quit, but said the sport would survive if they did, drawing a parallel with the 1994 death of triple champion Ayrton Senna.
“The idea that they are indispensable is nonsense,” the Briton said. “It’s a little bit like poor Senna. He was the most important driver in 1994, but when he very sadly got killed Formula One went on. Lotus were very important once, so were Brabham.”
Mosley said there could be no flexibility on a May 29 deadline for entries for next year’s championship, warning also that there was a significant number of serious would-be competitors eager to come in.
Despite that, he said the governing body wanted all the teams to race under the same regulations and they had “gone off to reconsider” their position and see if they could agree an acceptable alternative.
The FIA head played down talk of a crisis, saying there was plenty of time yet, but the Ferrari legal action had complicated matters.
“When people start bringing proceedings it gets very difficult to negotiate with them,” he said of an application for an injunction that he heard about through a text from his lawyer.
The FIA want an optional £40 million (US$61 million) cost cap, offering greater technical freedom than available to those teams staying on unrestricted budgets, that they say is needed for the sport’s survival in the face of the global financial crisis.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Team Taiwan avoided missing the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time by defeating Spain 6-3 in a do-or-die game in Taipei last night. After narrowly escaping a mercy-rule loss to Spain in the WBC Qualifiers opener on Friday last week, the home team — winner of last year's WBSC Premier12 title three months ago — got their revenge against the 2023 European champions at Taipei Dome. "It felt quite different from when we won the Premier12," Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game, recalling the ups and downs the team has experienced over the past few days. Unlike in
RSS