Monday 30th January 2006

Williams signs F1 agreement

Ecclestone wins again

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Williams' 2005 car

The threat by F1 teams F1 to form a breakaway series has all but faded away as Williams team boss Sir Frank Williams signs up to join F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone's Concorde agreement until 2012.

Over the last couple of years, the teams complained that they weren't getting a big enough share of the money that TV pumps into the sport, as a very sizeable proportion of it goes to Ecclestone's company. As a result, they were holding over Ecclestone's head the threat to break away and form their own F1-alike racing series.

However, with the Williams move, Ecclestone seems to have headed this one off at the pass, as the biggest hold-out until now joins Ferrari and Red Bull. Williams said that he believed the rest would now follow suit, saying that there's been less talk about the issue in recent months.

[danhay]

I wonder if Williams got a signing up fee too?

[rubystone]

From the statements coming out fromteh Ronster, I am pretty sure that a deal with teh GPMA hasa all but been inked - face saving is already happening with both sides stating that the GPMA has produced measurable results - viz. the more equitable sharing of the revenues.

I'd imagine that FW received an advance by signing on the dotted line...

[groomi]

Didn't this happen about two weeks ago? I think Ted needs to get some better scouts, or at least have a look at F1live.com occasionally...

[mybrainhurts]

Can't understand how the Silver Goblin's got away with what he's got away with for so long....

[Stephen White]

Who cares - F1 sucks, and has done so for over a decade. Attendence is down, etc, etc. I'm looking forward to it dying a slow, nasty death. It'll (hopefully) leave room for Rallying, and Moto GP, which are each twenty times more exciting...

[nightdriver]

Stephen White said:

Attendence is down, etc, etc

I dont think it is really, Silverstone has been a sell out for the past two years, first time in a long while, and there building a new grandstand for next years race.....

[tollytuff]

i think that whilst silverstone has been a sell out for a few years, its partly because they dont let as many people in as they used to. bernie made them chop the numbers for some reason.

whilst i think bernie can be a little berk somtimes, having him in charge is a much better idea than the car makers, they'll pull out when they think they arn't selling enough cars and dump F1 like a stone....