FIA's Position On The New Teams

Conducted and provided by the FIA's press office.


Q. How are you ensuring that applicants are adequately and securely funded?

A: We are using professional advisors to make checks on the substance behind any funding sources on top of obtaining reviews of pertinent contracts and other relevant documentation. Bank references have been supplied in many cases.

Q. What is involved in the Due Diligence process?

A: We have requested documentary evidence to support all the new teams' assertions, in particular with regards to funding. Thus we have been provided with accounts, contracts, multi-year business plans and other supporting material. On the technical side we have asked for a thorough description of their capability, key staff, project plans, capital assets (present and planned for), organisational charts, and so on.

Where there are key sub-contractors required we have asked to see contracts and letters of intent. This extends to the sponsorship side, where plans and any descriptions of existing relationships )are required. In all these aspects we have requested evidence that substantiates any claim in the teams' plans.

In the background to these evaluations, where key individuals were identified on the funding side, our forensic accountancy advisors have run reputational checks, alongside the checking of factual data supplied.

Once we had formed an opinion of the serious contenders we asked them to come to London to be questioned face to face by the due diligence team. Then a short summary report on the top five was sent to the FIA President.

Q. Have you enlisted the help of other experts to help with the Due Diligence?

A: It would not have been possible to perform this exercise without expertise from our advisors, Deloitte, who have assisted us throughout. The forensic ability to give advice on the documents provided is invaluable.

Q. How many applicants were there and were all of them taken forward to the due diligence process?

A: There were 15 applicants and we took 12 of these through the process initially. We interviewed nine of the more promising potential teams. There were a surprising number of well-presented entries, with substantial funds behind them.

Q. Is it really possible to perform due diligence on all of these organisations in such a short amount of time?

A: It has been intense. The one advantage is that the short timescale has revealed the teams that really have their plans together and the answers to hand, and those that are making it up as they go along. If they are going to be in Formula One they need to be able to respond quickly and competently. Thus the condensed time line has 'stress tested' the new entrants.

Q. Have you been surprised by how many viable teams have applied to enter the championship?

A: Yes it was a surprise in some ways, but more reassuring than surprising. Formula One is a fantastic prospect and with the financial reforms to lower the barrier to entry to realistic levels it is good to see such a strong market for new teams. This exercise has demonstrated that the only reason there have been vacancies on the F1 grid for many years was the excessive cost of participation.

 

The FIA has revealed that it received 15 entries from new teams to enter Formula 1 next year.

In the wake of the announcement that Campos Grand Prix, Team US F1 and Manor Grand Prix have been granted unconditional entries to next year's championship, the FIA also says discussions are continuing with other outfits in case current teams choose to leave.

In a statement issued on Friday, the FIA said: "When the FIA opened entries for the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship, it received applications from 15 potential new teams.

"All of those entries underwent a stringent due diligence process to ensure that new teams have the required level of funding, resources, experience and technical expertise to compete at the highest level of motor sport.

"Three of those teams have been confirmed for 2010 and further due diligence is currently taking place on other potential entries."

The FIA also revealed details of the three successful new teams.

Campos Grand Prix's headquarters will be in Madrid, while its technical centre will be at Campos Racing's current headquarters in Valencia. The team will be powered by Cosworth engines, and its car will be built by Dallara.

Manor Grand Prix is a tie-up between Manor Motorsport and Wirth Research Limited; with former team boss Nick Wirth acting as technical director below team owner John Booth.

Team US F1 is being run by Ken Anderson and Peter Windsor, and will be based in Charlotte in the United States.

 

Prodrive boss David Richards has expressed his disappointment at the decision by the FIA not to include his team on next year's official entry list, but has still not totally given up on seeing his outfit make the grid in 2010.

With continued uncertainty about the future of the eight Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) members, and them having until June 19 to drop the conditions attached to their entries, there remains a chance other new teams could be added to the roster.

AUTOSPORT understands that the FIA is remaining in dialogue with at least three or four F1 hopefuls who could be granted entries if current teams drop out.

Richards said he would keep a close eye on events over the next week, although said his focus for now was on this weekend's Le Mans 24 Hours - where he is competing with Aston Martin.

"We are naturally disappointed by the FIA's decision not to include Prodrive in the preliminary entry list for 2010 as we believe we have the resources and set-up to be competitive in Formula 1 and would make a positive contribution to the sport," said Richards in a statement issued on Friday.

"We will wait to see how things develop in the next week, up to the 19th June deadline set by the FIA and we remain prepared and ready to implement our plans should the circumstances allow. As we have seen before, there are quite often many twists and turns in Formula 1.

"However, this weekend our attention is one hundred percent focused on our Aston Martin team at Le Mans. For the first time we are challenging for outright victory with a three-car line-up, following two consecutive GT1 class wins, on the 50th anniversary of Aston Martin's historic 1959 win at the circuit de La Sarthe."

 

Team Lotus will remain in 'close contact' with the FIA over the next few days to hear if it will still get a chance to move into Formula 1 next year, despite being absent for the entry list issued on Friday.

The FIA only granted slots to three new teams on Friday - Campos Grand Prix, Manor Grand Prix and Team US F1 - while it awaits the outcome of discussions between current teams and the FIA about the future.

The eight members of the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) have been told that they must drop the conditions attached to their entries by next Friday if they are to keep their slots on the grid.

Should any of the current teams decline that opportunity, then there will be a chance for other new teams to make the step up. The FIA remains in talks with three or four new outfits while the matter is sorted out over the next few days.

Team Lotus issued a statement on Friday confirming it was one of these extra teams, and said it remained determined to get into F1.

"The FIA have today announced their preliminary list of teams for the 2010 F1 Championship. Team Lotus is disappointed not to be on that provisional list," said the statement.

"However, we understand that in the event that any of the teams listed do not agree the terms imposed by the FIA, we are short-listed to fill any spots which become available.

"Therefore we remain in close contact with the FIA and will work with them to ensure that Team Lotus is selected in the event that any spaces become available in the next seven days.

"Our team remains committed to motor racing and does not intend to let this initial disappointment deter our Formula 1 ambitions."

 

Superfund team principal Alex Wurz says his outfit remains on the reserve entry list for the 2010 Formula 1 championship.

Wurz had submitted an entry to compete with the new team next year, but his entry was not selected by the FIA on Friday.

However, with uncertainty about the position of the FOTA teams, some of the squad not entered are still on the reserve list in case some of the current teams drop out.

Wurz said Superfund was on that list.

"I'm not exactly sure what it depends on," Wurz told AUTOSPORT at Le Mans. "There is a deadline on June 19, so there are a few days more of due diligence to do on the team entries.

"The FIA asked Team Superfund to be in a reserve position, and they will keep on talking to the team and then a decision will be made."

The Austrian driver said he was unsure about the future of the project should the team not enter F1 in 2010.

"We have to see. This year I am still doing the Peugeot and I am under contract with Brawn. I have my company to run, so I am pretty busy anyway."

 

The FIA believes that its big push to reduce costs, which has put it at loggerheads with current teams, has been fully justified by the high level of interest from new outfits to join Formula 1.

Motor sport's governing body revealed on Friday that 15 applications had been made by new teams to enter F1 in 2010, although only three were chosen in the entry list that was published.

In a statement issued by the FIA on Friday afternoon, detailing the selection process for the new teams, it made it clear that it believes the cost reductions planned for next year had been the key factor in producing so much interest.

"It was a surprise in some ways, but more reassuring than surprising," said the FIA about the high level of interest. "Formula 1 is a fantastic prospect and with the financial reforms to lower the barrier to entry to realistic levels it is good to see such a strong market for new teams.

"This exercise has demonstrated that the only reason there have been vacancies on the F1 grid for many years was the excessive cost of participation."

The FIA revealed that it conducted full financial examination of all the entries to check they had the money to compete in F1, as well as conducting face-to-face interviews with the entrants in London.

This enabled the governing body to whittle down the leading contenders to a shortlist of five, which was then sent to FIA president Max Mosley.

"There were 15 applicants and we took 12 of these through the process initially," said the FIA. "We interviewed nine of the more promising potential teams. There were a surprising number of well-presented entries, with substantial funds behind them."

 

I have no proof either way. Do you? Or are you just guessing? ;}