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The last few days have seen letters flying back and forth between FOTA and the FIA like paper planes.

On Tuesday the FIA published a lengthy essay on what it feels the dispute is really about, accusing the teams of an attempt to take over the commercial rights to Formula One and the regulatory function away from the FIA.

This prompted a letter from FOTA to Max Mosley and Bernie Ecclestone which sought to ‘compromise and bring an urgent conclusion to the protracted debate’.

Mosley replied with a letter of his own in which he essentially dismissed all the FOTA proposals.  Instead, he suggested that the teams sign up unconditionally after which they could get together to discuss any regulation changes that could be made.

Interestingly, the FIA have also published a summary of cost cap discussions that took place between the teams and the FIA in January of 2008.  In a meeting on 11 January it seems that practically all the teams felt that a budget cap would be ‘the fairest and most effective way of minimising the impact of the recession’ and ‘only Jean Todt (Ferrari) disagreed, stating that a cost cap was not achievable for his team.’

This document also has links to the minutes of this meeting where several team principals speak favourably of cost-capping.  For example:

Ross Brawn felt that the FIA and the teams’ albeit worthy attempts in the past to drastically cut costs had failed due to the fact that although technical constraints had been introduced to reduce expenditure, the teams had continued to spend in other ways. He therefore felt that it might be preferable to consider budget caps in some if not all areas of car development along with technical constraints as he felt that this was the only way to really control actual spend.

These minutes do seem to cast FOTA’s rejection of a budget cap in a new light.  Ferrari have always been against a cap but the other teams seem to have been broadly in favour of it, at least in some form.  It really looks, as many have noted, that this is more about Max Mosley’s governance of the FIA than cost caps.

The teams have until Friday to sign up unconditionally to the 2010 Formula One Championship and I’m still optimistic some kind of agreement can be reached.  I get the impression most of the FOTA teams would be willing to compromise.  Ferrari, however, have publicly stated that they won’t compete in 2010 unless the regulations are changed so who knows what they will do?

At least we don’t have to wait long to find out.

In 1943 the Royal Air Force opened RAF Silverstone as a base for Vickers Wellington bombers.  After the Second World War, the Royal Automobile Club took a lease on the deserted airfield and held a couple of races on the runways with a track laid out in hay bales before switching to the perimiter track in 1949.

In 1950, Silverstone hosted the first race of the newly created Formula One World Championship.  The British Grand Prix then rotated between Silverstone, Aintree and Brands Hatch before settling permanently at Silverstone in 1987.

If Bernie Ecclestone has his way 2009 will be the last time the British Grand Prix is run at Silverstone, at least for the next 17 years.  From 2010 the race will move to Donnington Park, a circuit not without its own history but still lacking the connection with Formula One that Silverstone has had for the last 60 years.

Last year, Lewis Hamilton proved he was a master in the rain when he won at Silverstone in one of Formula One’s greatest ever wet-weather drives.  Hamilton described it as “by far the best victory I’ve ever had”, eventually finishing over a minute ahead of Nick Heidfeld in second place.

Unfortunately for Lewis he has practically no chance of repeating that result on Sunday, even if it rains.  Silverstone is a high-speed track with more than 60% of the circuit taken at full throttle.  But it also requires high-downforce through the incredible high-speed corners like Becketts, and downforce is something the McLaren just hasn’t got right yet.

Jenson Button on the other hand is looking forward to racing in front of his home fans:

To be leading the championship going into my home grand prix is something that I’ve never experienced before and it puts a smile on my face every time I think about it.

Renault will be bringing developments to the R29’s diffuser and an upgraded front wing package and Technical Director Bob Bell thinks the high-speed nature of the circuit should suit their car:

We’ve got reasonably high expectations for Silverstone, although we’re remaining realistic because we know we’re not suddenly going to be fighting for the podium.

Toyota had quite a strong result in Turkey, with Jarno Trulli finishing fourth, and according to Toyota’s Pascal Vasselon the team are hoping to build on that at Silvertone:

So far this season, we have been extremely competitive at tracks which require high aero efficiency, so we are optimistic for Silverstone.

But the biggest threat to a Brawn GP victory on Sunday is Red Bull.  Both Red Bull drivers were on the podium in Turkey and the fast nature of Silverstone should suit the RB5.

To make your predictions in round 8 of the F1Buzz prediction game (and be in with a chance to win some nice prizes), just leave a comment on this post with your driver predictions for the race in the following format:

Pole:
First:
Second:
Third:
Fastest lap:

Remember, the deadline for entries is start of qualifying on Saturday, that’s 12:00 GMT.

Good luck!

Image: McLaren

Ever wanted to race in Le Mans?  Here is your chance to pick up an extremely rare McLaren F1 GTR “Long Tail” in Gulf Team livery.

In 1995 McLaren built the first race version of the F1 and at Le Mans that year McLaren F1 GTRs took 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 13th places.

Despite being entered in the GT class, the reliability of the McLaren F1 saw it beat the faster purpose-built Le Mans Prototype cars, completing 298 laps at an average speed of more than 162 km/h.  It also recorded the highest top speed in practice, reaching 281 km/h.

Incredibly the first McLaren F1 GTR had only rolled off the production line six months earlier.

In 1997,  a number of changes were made to the GTR to meet major regulation changes but the most important was a substantial reduction in weight.  The ’97 car weighed only 915kg and this combined with an improved transmission and the new “long tail” aerodynamics saw lap times improve by four seconds over the GTR ’96.

At Le Mans in 1997 Gulf Team Davidoff won the GT category and also finished second overall.

Out of 28 McLaren F1 GTRs built, only 10 were long tails.  This one is chassis number 28 and was originally used as a Gulf Team Davidoff spare car that was raced during the second half of the season.

It might not be as rare or as beautiful as a Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa but this is still an automotive work of art.

The ultimate race version of the ultimate road car.

Adrian Campos has said he would like to use Spanish drivers when his new Campos Grand Prix team joins the Formula One grid next year.

Campos Grand Prix will be based in Madrid and Valencia and will use a chassis designed by Dallara and a Cosworth engine.

Spain’s AS newspaper said that four drivers were in the running for a race seat with the team in 2010: new Le Mans winner, Marc Gené,  GP2 driver Javi Villa, former Force India test driver Roldan Rodriguez and McLaren third driver Pedro de la Rosa.

Thanks to his recent Le Mans success, the press have focussed on Marc Gené, but I’m more interested in seeing Pedro de la Rosa’s name in connection with a race seat.

I like Pedro.  He is a very experienced driver, having been in Formula One for ten years and as well as being an excellent test driver has performed well when required to take the McLaren out on race day.  He finished second in the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix behind Jenson Button.

Lewis Hamilton thinks he’s ok, too:

I’ve known Pedro since he joined the team in 2003.  His approach, outlook and positivity were an inspiration to me as I prepared to make my Formula 1 debut.  His efforts over the years have lifted this team to some phenomenal heights.  I am proud of what Pedro has done – and continues to do – for Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, the guy is a legend.

Legend he may be, but at 38 de la Rosa is also the oldest driver in Formula One, older even than Rubens Barrichello.  But like Barrichello he clearly still has a passion to race in Formula One and as David Coulthard proved with Red Bull, what a young team really needs is an experienced driver.

60 years after the first Ferrari won Le Mans, Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo waved the French tricolour to start the 77th Grand Prix of Endurance at the Circuit de la Sarthe.

In 1949, Luigi Chinetti practically single handedly won the race behind the wheel of a Ferrari 166 MM, Spider/Barchetta Touring, driving for 22 out of the 24 hours.

It is a race Ferrari won 9 times between 1949 and 1965 and this year there are 10 Ferrari F430 GTs competing in the GT2 category (the biggest number of cars of the same make) – but no works Ferraris.

Naturally, with such a historic connection to Le Mans and all the talk of Ferrari withdrawing from Formula One, people are wondering about a return to the 24 Heuers Du Mans for Ferrari.

Di Montezemolo spoke to the press after a lap of the circuit in a Ferrari California with Jean Alesi behind the wheel:

A Ferrari at Le Mans? Why not?  If we should not race in Formula 1 anymore this would be an option: obviously not with a car with a Diesel engine, but maybe with a hybrid, who knows.

In this race you can really see the values of competition in the areas of sports and technology, but I have to say again that the life, the heart and the soul of Ferrari are with Formula 1.  This year, also because of the rules we can call “grey”, it doesn’t go too well, but we will never give up.

Where we will be in 2011? For sure this situation will be resolved somehow: we will race in a Formula 1 with characteristics we want to keep or there will be some sort of alternative.

It’s true that many years have passed since the last overall win of a Ferrari in this race and I have a dream, which is also a wish, to see sooner or later an official car starting in the race.

Image: Ferrari