Sauber has backed former FIA president Max Mosley’s renewed call for a budget cap in formula one.
Earlier this week, ahead of the Strategy Group’s crunch meeting on May 14 about the future, Mosley told Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport that teams should revisit the idea of limiting their budgets to $100 million per year. Under Mosley’s plan, those who sign up to the budget cap would get much more technical rules freedom, while teams who want to spend more would be limited to the current, restrictive regulations.
The Briton says he cannot understand why a team like Ferrari would be reluctant to sign up, as the fabled team could easily raise the $100 million and then pocket any bonus sponsorship. “This would make Ferrari even more attractive as they go public,” said Mosley. “I think they (the big teams) are just resisting the notion that they would suddenly have ten instead of two competitors,” he added.
On Twitter, Sauber said the proposal is “A good idea by Max Mosley which we fully support”. Also on the agenda at the forthcoming Strategy Group meeting will be Bernie Ecclestone’s push to simplify the rules and make the cars louder, more powerful and harder to drive.
Speaking to UOL Esporte, Williams driver Felipe Massa agrees that the rules are currently too complex. “It’s a little too hard for the people on the outside to understand,” he said. “I am very much in favour of changing the regulations to develop the mechanical side, like making the tyres bigger. So we go back a bit to what we had in the past.”
Massa, however, hit back at claims such as those made this week by Silverstone chief Patrick Allen, who said the field must be closed up amid Mercedes’ dominance. “I think it has always been like this,” said the Brazilian. “If you look back, there were always only two teams or sometimes just one fighting for the title. Sometimes it’s more like that than at other times. “I think Red Bull won in a way that was not very different to how Mercedes did last year,” added Massa.
