F1 2010 Rules & Budget Cap Resolved

The 10 current teams racing in Formula 1 are members of FOTA (Formula One Teams Association) and had been in dispute with the FIA over the rules for next season which involved a 40m Euro budget cap and a two tier rule structure which provided budget capped teams numerous advantages over the teams that did not accept the cap.

There was a huge row over the changes resulting in all FOTA teams refusing to enter unless changes were made. Williams GP was the first team to cave in and lodge its entry for next year ahead of today's deadline. FOTA promptly suspended (temporarily) the team's membership.

The remaining teams are expected to lodge their entries today as a result of negotiations which saw the two tier rule structure dropped and the budget cap raised and postponed. It is believed the 2010 budget cap will be 100m Euros per team, and that it will be reduced to 45m Euros in 2011.

New teams Prodrive (to be rebranded Aston-Martin in 2012), Lola, and US Grand Prix Engineering (USGPE) have also filed entries for the 2010 season. Thus we may have 26 car grids next season. Any more and pre-qualifying would be needed for each race.

How the budget cap will be enforced is still a mystery.