Marussia could merge with Sauber report Motorsport.com | Racing News, Race Results - F1, NASCAR, IndyCar and more Nov.28 (GMM) Formula One could be set to shed yet another team from the back of the grid ahead of the 2014 season. Twelve teams contested last year's world championship, but struggling HRT succumbed at the end of the year. Now, according to Germany's Auto Motor und Sport, the sport could be reduced to just 10 teams and twenty cars ahead of the 2014 season. Respected correspondent Michael Schmidt said backmarker Marussia could merge with the financially struggling but far more established midfielder Sauber. "(Marussia team owner) Andrei Cheglakov is apparently fed up with digging so deep into his own pockets only to be at the back of the field," said Schmidt. "But he wants to stay in Formula One. First, he wanted to buy Toto Wolff's Williams shares," the German correspondent added. "Bernie Ecclestone is said to have endorsed the deal, but Claire Williams rejected it because they want to remain independent. "Now, the Russians apparently have Sauber in their sights," said Schmidt. Meanwhile, RTL Nederland has reported that Marcel Boekhoorn, a Dutch businessman and billionaire, could be interested in buying into Force India. Fascinatingly, Boekhoorn is Caterham driver Giedo van der Garde's father-in-law.
What happened to Sauber's Russian Investors from earlier this summer. I still don't know how on earth Sauber have run a car without sponsorship for the last few years. You would think better than something rather than nothing on those side pods.
It is so bad at the back end of the field that I expect the loss of another team over the winter break.
Looks like the chickens are coming home to roost. When it all shakes out will any of the expansion teams be around? How's Bernie going to fill his grids without HRT, Marussia et al?
Call me a blind pig. I suspect that the grid will be shorter next season and even shorter the year after. Teams that are trying to do the new formula on a cut rate budget aren't going to get the results sponsors want. If he doesn't deliver full grids will Bernie have to take lower revenues from tracks and TV? If that happens will he have enough to subsidize the back markers and still make the investors happy? Old Chinese curse; "may you live in interesting times".
He will need to change his golden pot distribution formula. It is simply too brutal not to hand out $ to the teams with zero points or very little points while the big ones at the front are getting cash bonuses they hardly need. I realize it is capitalism at its finest, but you don't have a race without the "extras" circling.
What you may not have is a show. If not by points what metric do you use? Anyone with a garage can apply for Berniebucks? They're not bonuses but subsidies after all.
Or, the Marusaubians? And we're not even a week into the off season yet! I've got a feeling it's going to be a *long* winter...... Cheers, Ian
+1 Gotta remember though this entire season was "boring", the cars are "underpowered", all the drivers "suck" (one way or another) and the engineers, strategists and designers are "clueless"! If only Fchat could mount it's own F1 team we'd blow the Cans into the weeds according to many here...... Cheers, Ian
Toto Wolff also confirms that Marussia is talking with Williams about a merger. Bottom line is that it's expensive to fund a 10th or 11th place F1 team!
