The 2010 budget cap discussion thread

:D....it wouldn't surprise me if they made these compulsory tbh :p...
 
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/75791

Epsilon confirms 2010 F1 entry attempt

By Pablo Elizalde Wednesday, June 3rd 2009, 11:28 GMT

Joan VilladelpratThe Epsilon Euskadi team has officially confirmed that is has submitted its entry to compete in Formula 1 next season.

Epsilon boss Joan Villadelprat said the team wanted to be silent until the necessary budget was in place, but the former F1 team manager has revealed he has now secured the finances for the next four years if the Spanish squad is chosen by the FIA on 12th June, when the entry list for 2010 will be announced.

"We can confirm it now," Villadelprat told AUTOSPORT in an interview. "Our entry was submitted last week. We lodged it on Wednesday and received confirmation by the FIA on Thursday. I was being discreet and didn't want to talk too much because I was finalising the financial part."

He added: "Now we can say we have a budget ready for the four next years. The difference between ourselves and other people is that, first, we have a project that's different from everybody else's, with a social output, which is what Max Mosley is looking for. We have the mechanics' school, the engineers' school, the lower categories, from karting, Formula Renault 2.0 and the World Series.

"We have the infrastructure, with an investment of ?65 million, something that not everybody has. We have a wind tunnel, autoclaves, etc. And right now I can say that, if we are chosen, we have the budget secured for the next four years," said the Spaniard, who worked in Formula 1 for 25 years, with spells at McLaren, Ferrari and Renault among other teams.

Villadelprat, whose team has raced in the Le Mans 24 Hours with its own LMP1 car, said Epsilon has submitted its entry with the new budget cap rules in mind.

But the team boss admitted he was not too worried about the possibility that the cap could be increased, as he reckons he has the necessary budget to do a good job.

"At this point it doesn't matter to us," he said when asked if the team would compete under budget cap rules. "What I've done is do the maths, and I don't think I got it wrong because I have been doing it for many years, to see what we need to do things right. And we have the budget secured to do things right.

"We submitted our entry with the budget cap in mind, but we are waiting for the FIA to decide what the final rules will be. As of today, we are under the budget cap, but the budget cap is a bit misleading, because it's ?45 million plus drivers, plus marketing and a series of things. The budget I think is needed is around 70-75 million."

Villadelprat feels his team deserves the chance to compete in grand prix racing, and he reckons Epsilon is in a strong position thanks to its infrastructure and its philosophy.

"I know what I need. I know the amount of money I need," Villadelprat added. "We are not starting from zero. We are constructors. We have proved that. We have built Le Mans cars which have been competitive. So I think there's enough to show that at least we deserve the chance.

"I'm doing it with humbleness and seriousness. Because I know, and few people do, what it is to be in Formula 1. I've been in Formula 1 for 25 years, and I've led teams from the bottom to the top. Benetton was a team that nobody knew and in five years we were world champions. So I know what it is to start a project like this, and I know I can do it again.

"In Formula 1 it has been made very clear that money is not everything, because not all the teams with big budgets have done a decent job over the last years. So money is not everything. It's about organisation, about know-how, about creating a good team, and about having the resources to launch the project. But the decision is up to the FIA, and I hope they can value our programme and our concept."
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Ladies and gentlemen, if the FOTA teams are in for 2010, then here is the 11th team on the entry list. This is a serious outfit, with all the infrastructure in place and, according to its manager, a solid budget to compete in F1 for the next few years. Probably THE most serious on the list of potential entrants.


P.S. The Epsilon Euskadi cars will be the most menacing on the grid. Because, without a doubt, they will be black-liveried.
 
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Never heard of them, but Joan Villadelprat ought to be a good leader. Steve Matchett appeared to have a high opinion of him in his published books so I hope it works out. Seems a bit strange how all these teams are suddenly just appearing though. Peter Windsor claims USF1 has been an ongoing poject for several years, but what of these other outfits like Superfund, Epsilon, Lola, etc? Speaking of Lola, they proved in 1997 you cant just start up an F1 organisation in under 12 months and hope it succeeds, and I doubt much has changed in the past decade and a bit...
 
Red_Bull said:
Speaking of Lola, they proved in 1997 you cant just start up an F1 organisation in under 12 months and hope it succeeds, and I doubt much has changed in the past decade and a bit...
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Not really the same though is it. The same would be if all these teams were planning to enter in 2011, and then the FIA forced them to compete in the 2010 season, giving them about 3 months notice.
 
Brabham family contests new team name

Amongst the flurry of Formula One projects vying for a place on the extended 2010 grid, one name stood out to recall former days when it appeared that Brabham Grand Prix had filed its entry papers.

German businessman Franz Hilmer bought the assets of the former Super Aguri operation last year; in association with Formtech, he now intends to run the Brabham team next season under FIA President Max Mosley's budget cap plan.

However, triple World Champion Jack Brabham and his family are insisting that they have nothing do to with Hilmer's plans. In fact, they intend to prevent him from using their famous surname.

"Sir Jack Brabham and the Brabham family have expressed their surprise at the recent news reporting that an entry has been submitted for the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship by Formtech with the intention of operating as Brabham Grand Prix Limited," indicated a statement released on Thursday.

"The family would like to make it clear that they are in no way involved with Brabham Grand Prix Limited and received no consultation regarding the company's plans to resurrect their historic name in Formula One," the statement continued.



"The family is taking legal advice and will take necessary steps to protect their name, reputation and its goodwill," concluded the Brabham Enterprises Limited press release.

The company is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
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Hey guys, lets get some money and place an entry for 2010: "Final Gear GP"

Jezza can be the team principal, Hamster can be the chief engineer, and James can be the chief mechanic.

Of course Stig and Jay Kay can be the drivers.
 
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James as the mechanic? Do you know how MANY items there are in a garage? By the time he finishes naming them all, the season would be over
 
zephyrus17 said:
James as the mechanic? Do you know how MANY items there are in a garage? By the time he finishes naming them all, the season would be over
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Maybe he we could tell him on a wednesday when we get to the track he has a big part to play so he organises everything and then we shunt him so we dont have to set up anything.
 
Litespeed to use Lotus name for F1 bid

By Matt Beer Sunday, June 7th 2009, 03:12 GMT

Litespeed has announced that it will use the historic Lotus name for its attempt to enter Formula 1 next season.

The Norfolk-based Formula 3 squad's founders Nino Judge and Steve Kenchington are both former Lotus engineers, and have received permission from Lotus name rights-holder David Hunt to use the evocative title for their F1 bid.

"Team Lotus is synonymous with great British engineering and F1 innovation, such as the Lotus 25 being the first monocoque chassis in F1 and the introduction of groundbreaking sponsorship, both of which easily demonstrate why ex-Lotus personnel would want to bring this championship-winning name back to the formula," said Judge.

"Litespeed was born from a similar British background - a factor that was at the core of Colin Chapman's beliefs and subsequent success.

"David Hunt has been the custodian of the name for so many years and we thank him for entrusting us not just with its safeguard but, more importantly, its development in the racing world of tomorrow."

The team had already revealed that former Tyrrell, Jordan, Renault, Toyota and Force India technical boss Mike Gascoyne had begun design work via his MGI organisation. Gascoyne also welcomed the news that the project would use the Lotus title.

"I am Norfolk born and bred," said Gascoyne. "For me to continue my F1 career under the banner of the Team Lotus name and help to bring it back to its deserving place in the world championship is a fantastic feeling and something that I am extremely proud to be doing."

Litespeed will base the Lotus F1 project in the RTN facility in Norfolk previously used by TOM'S and which later housed Audi and Bentley's Le Mans projects.

The team has also recruited Johnny Herbert, who raced for Lotus in F1 from 1991 to 1994, as a commercial ambassador and driver manager.

Founded by legendary designer and innovator Colin Chapman, the original Lotus team moved into F1 in 1958 after success in sportscars and Formula 2. It would go on to earn seven constructors' titles and take Jim Clark, Graham Hill, Jochen Rindt, Emerson Fittipaldi and Mario Andretti to drivers' championships.

Its last race wins came with Ayrton Senna in 1987, after which its fortunes went into sharp decline - the famous team eventually closing its doors at the end of an uncompetitive and cash-strapped 1994 season.

Lotus is the third famous name to be associated with a prospective new F1 entrant for 2010, with other start-up projects having already announced plans to use the March and Brabham titles.
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