FORUMula1.com - F1 Forum

[Gert]

http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_ ... t_id=37314

Formula One Administration Limited ('FOA'), the commercial rights holder of Formula One, wishes to clarify and correct inaccurate and misleading statements made to the media yesterday by "FOTA".

In particular FOTA claimed that monies are owed by CVC (FOA's controlling shareholder) to the teams for the 2006, 2007 and 2008 Championship seasons. Neither CVC nor FOA owes any amount to any team.

The contract between the commercial rights holder and the teams competing in Formula One, the so-called Concorde Agreement, expired at the end of 2007. All prize fund entitlements payable to the signatory teams under that arrangement were paid when due.

FOA has made new contracts with various teams currently competing in the FIA Formula One World Championship on an individual basis, whereby the team has committed to participate in the Championship for an agreed period in return for which FOA has agreed to pay a share of an annual prize fund generated from and calculated with reference to its profits. Each of these teams has been paid its full prize fund entitlement to date.

A few teams have yet to enter into a contract with FOA concerning their participation in the Championship, notwithstanding which FOA has made substantial payments to each of them on account of future prize fund entitlements they will have when they sign a contract, demonstrating FOA's goodwill and intent to conclude a new arrangement with them.

FOA welcomes that the teams are engaging in constructive discussions to progress a new Concorde Agreement that will encompass all teams. FOA looks forward to finalising and concluding that contract with the teams in the coming weeks, at which time they will be paid whatever their entitlement will be under the new arrangement.

FOA has no relationship with FOTA. It has always had a direct relationship with teams and will continue to do so.


Which means:-

The teams have been paid at the old rates but think they should be have been paid at the rates Bernie agreed when the old Concorde agreement ended but 'cos he bunged Ferrari some extra cash not to sign the new deal it isn't legally binding.

Sadly the teams that have included the money Bernie said he would give them in their calculations for the last 4 years but didn't (& never will) may be facing bankruptcy shortly.They can blame greed & deviousness for that.

Not only that but as the new Forumla 1 is supposed to be cheaper Bernie is trying to pay even less.

When are the teams going to get the message?

"Leave F1, quickly"

Bernie will get his new F1, with teams we've never heard off, doing what he & Max tell them - we, & the teams we have supported for so long will just get shafted.

[Jabberwocky]

and the dance continues. I agree, I think Bernie is scared of the power of FOTA.

[Gert]

He was scared, then he bought off Ferrari & from that moment on he has held the advantage - if you want the money, do as he says.

If a new Concorde agreement ever gets signed it won't give the teams anything like the money they want & what's more, this time he seems to have bought Williams off. Perhaps they were cheaper than Ferrari.

[Jabberwocky]

who are the teams that have signed already?

[Gert]

q

[Gert]

"Who are the teams that have signed already?"

None of them officially. Williams have signed to stay in F1 until 2012 (or was it 11?) in order to get the advance on the cash Bernie owes them.

The point is that the last Concorde Agreement has expired. The teams thought they'd got an agreement out of Bernie for a new Concorde Agreement which would have paid them 50% or so of the take but then he bunged Ferrari some cash not to sign the document & as it needed the agreement of all the teams it died.

So the teams are still negotiating the Concorde Agreement now & running under the old, expired deal which usefully costs Bernie a load less.

Ferrari seems willing to forgo it's cash advantage over the other teams (assuming that their current work with FOTA isn't just a way to get yet more out of Bernie) as long as the deal verbally agreed but not signed is made valid.

It's more than possible that Bernie regards the cash he gave to Williams as cheaper than buying Ferrari to be his poodles.

The chance that all that lovely TV money goes to the teams is therefore remote.

[McLaren Fan]

From F1 Live:

Threats of a race boycott were unfulfilled, but whispers suggest other 'militant' action by Formula One teams has not been ruled out.

The Formula One Teams' Association and F1 Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone, are locked in a row over allegedly unpaid commercial revenues.

With leaks to the press and an exchange of heated press releases, a recent threat by some teams to boycott the Australian Grand Prix was revealed, although the parties now suggest that progress has been made since then.

"I think that is a business between the teams and Bernie that needs to be resolved urgently," McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh is quoted as saying by the Guardian.

Rumours indicate that although the mood of the quarrel has eased somewhat, FOTA has not entirely ruled out taking action - including a possible boycott of a forthcoming practice session.

"I don't think anybody wants to take any action that is excessively militant, but in the end we are performing I suppose and therefore we should be compensated for what we do," FOTA leading light John Howett, Toyota President, said.

Howett was present at the meeting with Ecclestone in which Ron Dennis and Flavio Briatore reportedly threatened to leave their teams' cars off the chartered 747 flights to Australia.

The Briton said on Friday: "We are making constructive and positive progress.”

"So hopefully in the next three to four weeks everything will be completely clear but we have made satisfactory progress for both sides to avoid any conflict this weekend," added Howett.

Source: GMM
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