New twist to British GP saga

The place of the Silverstone event, as well as that of the French Grand Prix, on the 2005 calendar was only ensured after all the teams other than Ferrari agreed financial terms with F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone to take part in the events.

The teams are entitled to extra money because the British and French events are the 18th and 19th on the calendar - beyond the 17 race maximum laid down in F1's concorde agreement.

Although the deal with nine teams was enough for motor racing's governing body to confirm Silverstone and Magny-Cours' place on its official 2005 calendar, the absence of Ferrari's agreement for the extra races now poses serious problems.

One possible scenario that has been mentioned is that in the unlikely event that Ferrari does not agree financial terms with Ecclestone, and subsequently refuses to take part in the races, then it could force the FIA to change its 2005 calendar - either by dropping Silverstone and Magny-Cours entirely or more likely making them both non-championship events.

Team boss Frank Williams, speaking at the unveiling of a major new sponsorship deal, with the Royal Bank of Scotland, said he was hopeful a solution could be agreed between Ecclestone and Ferrari, but admitted there was mild cause for concern.

"The teams (as in the non-Ferrari teams) have all agreed but Ferrari wants more money than the rest," said Williams. "Max may have to make it a non-championship event but remember that Bernie can make things happen better than anyone else.

"I am an optimist. There is a threat, but I don't think it is significant. It is something F1 can manage."

Sources close to the FIA have indicated that it is unaware of any developments regarding the 2005 calendar.