Ross Brawn has said that the economic stability of every Formula 1 team is now his top priority and has revealed that the sport is in the final stages of determining a new budget cap which could be in the region of $30 million less than what was initially purposed.
A cost cap of $175 million was set to be introduced from next season. However, the global coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing economic aftershocks on the teams has compelled the sport to revise its budget cap which Brawn says will now be set at $145 million.
Brawn held talks on yesterday with F1 CEO Chase Carey and the FIA over the future and sustainability of the sport, and soon after spoke to Sky Sports F1, saying:
“The message is clear – we’ve got to cut costs – and therefore there’s another big step in the reduction of the cost cap
“We started at $175m, that was a long battle to get it there. With the current crisis, we’re now going to start at $145m and the discussion really is how much further we can drive [it down] over the next few years.
“Today’s meeting was [between the] FIA and Formula 1… and the details will be going out to the teams in the next few days.
“There’s been a lot of consultation and I think we’re now we’re at the very final stages. It’ll all become clear shortly.”
McLaren CEO Zak Brown has been one of several team bosses who has expressed their vocal support of a reduced budget cap to protect the financial interests of the paddock. Brown has even suggested that if the sport does not listen to their advice there is a strong chance more than one team will leave the grid for good.
Consequently, this has put a lot of pressure on F1 to reconsider how much certain teams are spending and how this will affect the quality of racing from next season.
“The initial objectives [of the budget cap] were a more competitive field and I think with the situation we have now, economic sustainability is the priority, and I think that counts as much for the big teams as it does for the small teams,” he added.
“There’s going to be a much more equitable prize fund in the new agreement. The midfield teams are going to be much better off in terms of their proportion of prize money. So it’s being balanced in every direction
“We’re reducing the amount of money that can be spent in Formula 1 and improving the distribution of the prize fund more evenly amongst the teams. A good midfield team should be able to score podiums, maybe a win, and it should make a small profit.
“And if we can achieve that then we’ve got a very sustainable future.”
