LONDON: The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) President Max Mosley has signed a new Concorde Agreement, the document that governs Formula One racing, aiming to restore stability to the sport.
The Concorde Agreement is a contract between the FIA, F1’s commercial rights holder and the participating teams, and sets out the basis on which the teams participate in the F1 championship and share in its commercial success.
According to a statement issued Saturday, the new deal runs until Dec. 31, 2012.
The FIA said that Mosley, the controversial figure at the head of auto racing’s world governing body, signed the agreement late Friday after approval by the 26 members of the its World Motor Sport Council.
It said it hoped the new agreement would herald a renewed period of stability for the F1 World Championship which appeared to be in disarray a few weeks ago when many of the top teams threatened to pull out of the 2010 event.
The statement Saturday said that WMSC had also approved a slightly revised set of stable sporting and technical regulations to apply from the 2010 championship onwards, which had been agreed by the FIA and the teams.
“The new Concorde Agreement provides for a continuation of the procedures in the 1998 Concorde Agreement, with decisions taken by working groups and commissions, upon which all teams have voting rights, before going to the WMSC for ratification,” the FIA said. “In addition, as agreed in Paris on 24 June 2009, the teams have entered into a resource restriction agreement, which aims to return expenditure to the levels that prevailed in the early 1990s.”
Overspending was the sticking point between the FIA and the teams after Mosley tried to introduce measures, which were effectively a spending cap.
Mosley has been looking to cut costs since Honda’s exit in December, but his proposal to slash budgets to $60 million by 2010 has been criticized by most teams as being too low.
The Formula One Teams Association — made up of eight leading teams, including Ferrari and McLaren — had threatened to form a breakaway series. Mosley’s decision not to stay on when his term as FIA president expires in October appeared to appease the teams.
Schumi visits Massa
Meanwhile, Michael Schumacher visited injured Formula One driver Felipe Massa on Saturday at the Hungarian hospital where the 28-year-old Brazilian is recovering from his high-speed crash.
Schumacher, who is coming out of retirement to stand in for Massa at Ferrari, left the AEK hospital with former Ferrari boss Jean Todt but did not talk to reporters.
Schumacher used a 2007 version of the Ferrari F1 car to test drive at an Italian track on Friday.
Massa’s family doctor Dino Altman said Saturday that the Brazilian was “doing well” and was “anxious to go home.” According to Altman, Massa will fly home to Sao Paulo in a private jet on Monday to continue his recovery.
Massa said Thursday that he was thinking about racing again, but Altman said he did not know how soon the runner-up behind Lewis Hamilton in the 2008 Formula One championship could return to the track.
“There’s no hurry to bring him back to drive,” Altman said. “The most important (thing) is to have him fully recovered, in a safe situation.” Massa underwent surgery on multiple skull fractures after he was hit in the helmet by a loose part from another car and crashed into a protective tire barrier during qualifying at the Hungarian Grand Prix last Saturday.
