Paul Stoddart opens his trap again...
Paul Stoddart has revealed that Ferrari are subsidised by the other
nine teams on the grid.
The Minardi boss made the dramatic disclosure in an interview that
appears in the latest edition of F1 Racing magazine.
Asked if he thought the FIA were under the thumb of Ferrari,
Stoddart replied: No, I just think... Ferrari are special.
Why do all the other teams pay money,
real chequebook-out money, to Ferrari every year, under the
Concorde Agreement?
Why on earth, with our tight finances, do Minardi, for example,
have to pay money to Ferrari every year? Theres no good reason for
it.
"The answer were given is that its in recognition of their
historical contribution to the sport.
Stoddart is also unhappy with the influence that the world
champions have over the sports regulations.
He said: Theres talk, and I cant say
if its true or not, that the 2005 regulations were written by,
among others, 18 people from Ferrari.
"Its only paddock talk, of course but then again, Max has openly
conceded that the FIA consulted Ferrari, hasnt he?
Ive got a lot of respect for Ferrari, particularly for Michael
(Schumacher), but if a team are totally dominating the
championship, and have done for years and will do so for the next
few years, then it adds insult to injury to let these people write
the rules because its fairly obvious theyll write them in a way
that suits them.
Believe me, Ferrari are going to win the 2005 and 2006 titles, and
theres nothing any of us can do about it. - ITV-F1.com
