Letter outlines team concerns

That is the verdict reached by the nine outfits that met at Heathrow Airport in London on Tuesday as they made moves to delay a planned cost-cuts meeting with FIA president Max Mosley, scheduled for this Friday. Mosley has subsequently indicated that the meeting will go-ahead as planned.

The team's belief was made clear in a joint letter written to Mosley on behalf of themselves and F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

In the letter, which autosport.com has seen, the teams are adamant that the benefits of waiting for constructive market research about the sport and understanding the impact of new rules make it necessary for talks to be delayed.

"Whilst we welcome your initiative in regards to 2008, the consensus of our meeting is that it is premature to discuss now the detailed measures that you have put forward," said the letter. "We consider that it is vital prior to any far reaching discussions about the future of our sport that we await the output from the research to be commissioned by the Commercial Rights Holder and that we, the undersigned, assess the impact of the 2005 regulations in the initial races this year and appropriately consult our key stakeholders."

The letter added: "We anticipate that we will be in a position to bring our collective proposals to the FIA by mid-season, allowing sufficient time to consult all parties and reach an appropriate outcome by the end of this year.

"Although we appreciate that you would have wished to finalise the 2008 regulations now, we believe that the consultation and research will improve the process and ensure a more robust framework for our sport."

The FIA made it clear that with four teams (BAR, Renault, Williams and Ferrari) having submitted proposals prior to Friday's meeting, that it was vital the event went ahead so every outfit could have an input on any plans for future regulation changes.