Di Montezemolo seeks team orders change

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo wants to speak with FIA president Max Mosley about changing the sport's rules on team orders.

After the furore caused by Ferrari switching Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello on the final lap of the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix, team orders that influence the outcome of a race were outlawed by the sport's governing body.

The rule has been accepted for some time and caused little controversy since. However, the fact that Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa's understandable decision to swap places in China was cause for post-race discussion, questions have again been raised about whether the rule needs a tweak to prevent teams being put in awkward positions.

And di Montezemolo has said that he will bring the matter up with Mosley when they next meet.

"I'll talk about it with Mosley, we need to get rid of this hypocrisy," di Montezemolo told Gazzetta dello Sport. "The important thing is not to damage others. Besides that, team work, in a team sport, is one of the best things. Think of a cyclist leading the sprint for another."

Di Montezemolo also acknowledges that there has perhaps been too many stewards' decisions affecting races this year - although thinks in part matters are not helped by the kinds of circuits being raced on.

"Perhaps they've been a bit too picky, but I agree with them, otherwise the grands prix become a mess," he explained. "But the problem is the new circuits - they don't allow for the spectacle. It's enough with one Monaco."

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Theissen: BMW will learn from 2008

BMW motorsport director Mario Theissen is certain his team will learn the lessons from their disappointing second half to the 2008 campaign, as they bid to become genuine world title contenders next year.

The team led the world championship points standings after the Canadian Grand Prix in June, but were unable to match the development rate of rivals McLaren and Ferrari in the second half of the year.

That lack of progress has been singled out as a key factor that BMW Sauber must address for next season, and something Theissen is sure will be analysed in great detail to ensure there is no repeat next year.

"In terms of pure performance, we still have ground to make up on Ferrari and McLaren Mercedes, and we didn't make the progress we hoped to in the second half of the season," said Theissen in a team preview for the Brazilian Grand Prix.

"Indeed, some of our development projects did not yield the expected performance gains on the track. But I am certain we shall learn the lessons from this for 2009. After all, we want to be up there fighting for the World Championship title next season."

Despite the feelings about the progress made in the second half of the campaign, Theissen is still delighted with that BMW Sauber delivered on track this year.

"We have achieved our ambitious aims for the third year in succession," he said. "We not only proved to be one of the top teams from the outset, we also recorded our maiden race win. It was all the sweeter, of course, that our success in Canada came in the form of a one two.

"As things stand, we have now had 11 podium finishes this year, compared with two in 2007. This statistic alone is evidence of the considerable steps forward we have made.

"Added to that, Nick (Heidfeld) brought us our first fastest race lap in Malaysia, Robert (Kubica) claimed our first pole position in Bahrain, and we've now scored points in 34 consecutive races, something no other team can match.

"The last time we went home empty-handed from a GP weekend was in Brazil in the final race of 2006. This achievement does not come down to chance. Our trump cards this season have been spotless reliability, our - for the most part - excellent race strategy, outstanding work in the pit stops and a very small number of mistakes from the drivers."

McLaren remain cautious ahead of Brazil

McLaren will not allow themselves to get too comfortable about their position in the world championship, despite Lewis Hamilton's Chinese Grand Prix win helping him open up a seven-point advantage going into the final round in Brazil.

Hamilton's margin over Felipe Massa means he needs just four points from the Interlagos race to guarantee himself the title. But even though a fifth-place finish should be fairly straightforward for Hamilton and his team, McLaren F1 CEO Martin Whitmarsh is aware of the potential pitfalls that could hinder them.

"It is very easy not to finish a grand prix," explained Whitmarsh. "And, no one is going to go and beat Ferrari in Brazil. It is not a super comfortable position, but it is not a bad position going into the last grand prix.

"I think the way Lewis conducted himself over the course of this weekend - he had a lot of criticism flowing from last weekend, and he answered that. He was totally mature, he was driving within himself and that is how you win championships. He did a great job."

McLaren are evaluating a series of car updates for the final round of the season to try and help boost their performance – although a decision about whether or not they will be used will wait until later this week.

"Well, ordinarily given the pressures you have on the resources of the company you choose whether you want to use some of those resources developing a performance package," explained Whitmarsh. "I don't know what it will be at the moment because we are working on it.

"It may be nothing, but we have put the effort into primarily an aerodynamic package to enhance the efficiency of the car. And hopefully that is delivering while we have been away, and if it is we will have it on the car."

And Whitmarsh has praised the efforts and attitude of Hamilton, who faced huge pressure over the weekend amid criticisms of his driving tactics in the wake of the Japanese GP.

"I think you have to say that the whole weekend he just got on and dominated every session, so I don't think he was unduly affected by it (the criticism)," explained Whitmarsh. "I had several drivers come to me to say that they didn't really say what was reported and it was taken out of context.

"You learn in this industry and in these situations, if you are at the top of your game people are going to be more critical of you. That goes with the territory. It is the same for this team – if we stumble as a team then we will probably get panned to a much greater extent that some of the smaller teams. But on balance I would rather have that than the other."

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FIA and FOTA reach landmark agreement

A plan to make dramatic cost-cuts was agreed between the FIA and the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) in a landmark meeting in Geneva, it was announced in a joint statement on Tuesday.

It is believed that a broad agreement was reached between FIA president Max Mosley and FOTA chiefs Luca di Montezemolo and John Howett to introduce drastic cost reductions from next year.

The joint statement read: "Today's meeting in Geneva has produced significant cost savings for 2009 and 2010.

"FOTA are working urgently on further proposals for 2010 and thereafter."

But while the statement did not detail any specific measures, autosport.com understands that four key points were agreed:

- Engine life will be increased from two to three races from 2009

- Manufacturers must be prepared to make 25 engine units available, at a cost of 10 million Euros, to customer teams

- There will be a further meeting between FOTA members in Brazil to determine testing kilometre limits for 2009, and an agreement in principal on the introduction of a standard Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) unit for 2010 or 2011. KERS is believed to remain open for teams to use next season.

- The sport's governing body and FOTA will meet again after the Brazilian Grand Prix to discuss measures to reduce costs related to chassis development and the continuation of the use of customer chassis in the future.

When asked to comment on the agreements, an FIA spokesman said it was "inappropriate to comment at this time", but described the meeting as "very positive and constructive."

One source added that the meeting had "historical" significance because it "was the first time the teams had enjoyed such unanimity" in their discussions over the sport's future direction.

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Ferrari: No regrets over Alonso

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo says the Italian team have no regrets about rejecting Fernando Alonso's overtures for a future drive with the team - despite the Spaniard's resurgent form in recent races.

Alonso had set his sights on a switch to the Maranello-outfit, but in the end Ferrari opted to stick with Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa until the end of 2010 at least.

But although Raikkonen has had a disappointing time this season, struggling to get to grips with the characteristics of this year's tyres on the F2008, di Montezemolo is sure his team have made the right choice for the future.

Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport about how cheaply the team could have signed Alonso, di Montezemolo said: "That could have been the case four years ago, now I'm happy as we are.

"We are trying to win the title with a different driver from last year and both of them are winning the constructors' for us. If there is one thing giving us no problems, that's the drivers. Except for a non-elating second half of the season for Raikkonen, Massa has done an extraordinary season."

McLaren rival Lewis Hamilton holds a seven points advantage over Massa heading into next weekend's season finale in Brazil, but di Montezemolo thinks the title fight is far from over.

"I'm sorry that in China we had our worst performance of the year in competitiveness," he said. "But we are ahead in the constructors, which by winning it we can write 'world champions' on our cars. My objective at the beginning of the year was to win eight titles in ten years. That's a feat no one has ever achieved."

Talking about the drivers' crown, di Montezemolo said: "We've lost many chances, we suffered in reliability, however we're there.

"And since the championship will be decided in Brazil, let's hope we can score a goal at the 90th minute. I put my faith in the team, Kimi is at the outfit's disposal and Massa is in good form and races at home."

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Montreal mayor optimistic after meeting

Montreal mayor Gerald Tremblay has said he is optimistic that the city will get its Formula One race back on the calendar next season, following a meeting with Bernie Ecclestone in London today.

Tremblay held a two-hour discussion with Ecclestone to get a better understanding of the reasons why the event was dropped - with there having been a dispute over whether any race fees were still owed from previous years.

Speaking to local media, Tremblay said: "We have a better understanding of the issues, we still have a lot of work to do to evaluate all the options, but it is still possible to hold a Grand Prix in Montreal in 2009 and subsequent years."

Montreal city representatives are now expected to try and put together a battle plan to get their finances in shape before attempting to secure the race's future.

Federal International Trade Minister Michael Fortier said: "Many people have offered to help but they are all part of the elements we would need to evaluate in the coming days to determine if the Grand Prix will survive and who will be the promoter and organiser."

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The full letter to FOTA from Max Mosley

Costs

The FIA believes that Formula One costs are unsustainable. Even before current global financial problems, teams were spending far more than their incomes, insofar as these consist of sponsorship plus FOM money. As a result, the independent teams are now dependent on the goodwill of rich individuals, while the manufacturers' teams depend on massive hand-outs from their parent companies.

There is now a real danger than in some cases these subsidies will cease. This could result in a reduction in the number of competitors, adding to the two team vacancies we already have and reducing the grid to an unacceptable level. The FIA's view is that Formula One can only be healthy if a team can race competitively for a budget at or very close to what it gets from FOM.

We should like to hear the teams' views on this together with comments on the FIA's proposals (set out below) and other suggestions for the measures which will be necessary if major reductions in cost are to be achieved.

Power train

2013
The FIA would like to see a modern high technology power train in 2013. We envisage a down-sized DI engine with exhaust energy and heat recovery, coupled to an electrically actuated gearbox.

However, we are completely open to new ideas. The only preconditions are:

(i) that the costs of development, maintenance and unit production for the power train must be an order of magnitude lower than is currently the case and
(ii) power trains must be available to independent teams at minimal cost.

2010- 2012 inclusive
At present we can offer three options.

Option 1
A homologated engine produced by a single supplier after an invitation to tender, with the current suppliers free to build an identical engine themselves (but not the gearbox), subject to rigorous controls.

Option 2
A consortium of teams obtains an engine to current rules but at much lower cost from a single supplier. Engines from other sources to be subject to rigorous controls to eliminate differences in performance.

Option 3
A proposal from FOTA, backed by solid guarantees, for the supply of complete power trains to independent teams for less than €5 million per team per season to include 30,000 km of testing and all on-track assistance.

2009
When the decision was taken to "freeze" the engines, certain teams asked for and got a period of time in which to address reliability problems and re-tune for 19,000 rpm. Some teams took advantage of this period to improve the power output of their engines. This was not intended. Other teams did not improve their engines, believing performance to have been "frozen".

This has produced unfair and inequitable differences in performance. The World Motor Sport Council has therefore decided that engine performance will be equalised in accordance with the 2009 Sporting Regulations in order to re-establish the position as it was when the freeze was agreed.

The FIA would like to discuss with FOTA technicians how best to achieve equalisation in a way which is fair to all and involves minimal cost.

The Chassis

The FIA envisages common parts for numerous areas of the chassis. For example, standard suspension and wheels (ie standard "corners"), a standard underbody and other parts which are currently the subject of major expenditure but add nothing to the spectacle or to the public interest of Formula One.

Other measures, such as a minimum height for the centre of gravity, restrictions on the use of certain materials or the homologation of certain major components (eg the "tub") for a period of time, may also be appropriate.

We invite FOTA to make proposals together with a time scale for introduction.

Race procedures

The FIA would welcome suggestions for changes to the rules for going racing, with a view to reducing costs. We believe that priority should be given to things which the public cannot see (eg telemetry) rather than visible parts of "the show" (eg refuelling during the race).

The FIA would also like to hear teams' views about the distribution of garage space and space in the pit lane.

Ferrari boss positive after FOTA meeting