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Analysis: Formula One Faces Up to Change

Bernie Ecclestone's 72nd birthday on Monday is shaping up to be a decision day like no other for Formula One.

Bernie Ecclestone's 72nd birthday on Monday is shaping up to be a decision day like no other for Formula One.

The sport's commercial supremo will have little time for celebrations but he could mark his milestone with a revolution in the sport he has nurtured into a huge, cash-rich global business.

The International Automobile Federation's (FIA) Formula One commission, grouping all the teams in the World Championship, will meet in London to vote on a package of proposals that could inject new vigour into a glamour sport facing hard times.

It is likely to be a lively occasion, with much at stake, although team bosses were holding a preliminary meeting at the FIA's London office on Friday to try to iron out major disagreements.

"In truth, this is the most important meeting for Formula One in two decades, possibly ever," team boss Frank Williams said last week. "I have faith that common sense will prevail - everyone will be well prepared with lots of ideas to discuss.

"It is fair to say that we have plenty on the agenda and perhaps we could do with two days to discuss everything that needs to be said. Hopefully we can reach some concrete decisions and ensure the debate does not rumble on all winter."

Falling Audiences

Ecclestone and FIA president Max Mosley are adamant that something must be done to spice up the sport after a season of Ferrari domination and falling television audiences. Doing nothing, Mosley said recently, is not an option with Formula One at a crossroads.

Sources within the sport said the attitude of some team bosses appeared to have evolved since the season-ending race in Japan from a stance of outright opposition to greater pragmatism.

The proposed changes range from what amounts to major surgery to a more gentle facelift, with extreme ideas sharing space on the agenda with more moderate ones. The most radical is for all drivers to be contracted to the FIA rather than to individual teams, with each racing for every team over the course of a season.

In theory, that would mean five-times World Champion Michael Schumacher being forced to hand over his peerless Ferrari to rivals and step into their cars instead.

"Arguably, a change as radical as this is what Formula One now needs in order to re-establish its image and recapture the interest of the public," said a letter, sent to all teams detailing the agenda and seen by Reuters.

In practice, many Formula One insiders see the proposal as a measure designed to make other items on the agenda more palatable. Mosley said at the season-ending Japanese Grand Prix that while the idea was his personal favourite, he also accepted that the chances of Schumacher ever being seen at the wheel of a Minardi were remote.

"If I were a total dictator, I would do the drivers' swap because that would completely reorientate the Championship and, for the first time ever in its 52 years, the best driver would win and the best team would win," he said.

"At the moment that isn't necessarily the case."

Ballast Handicap

Minardi boss Paul Stoddart may like the sound of a swap but leading teams and drivers are all vehemently against the suggestion. Ecclestone has championed the idea of handicapping, by adding a kilo of ballast to a driver's car for every point won, if the driver swap idea is rejected.

Mosley said at Suzuka that simulations of the scheme had shown that Schumacher would still have won the title this season with the weight penalties but it would have taken the Championship down to the wire. The ballast idea has gained momentum, with Eddie Jordan coming out strongly in favour, but other team bosses have been wary of anything that smacks of manipulation.

"We are against this idea in principal," said Williams. "But we will approach the meeting with an open mind and won't rule anything out that is sensible and is of genuine benefit to Formula One.

"Our guiding criteria must be to concentrate on matters that improve the show. If we get this right, all the issues of financing in the sport will naturally be resolved."

Other Measures

Further proposals include replacing Saturday's one-hour qualifying session with two 30-minute sessions on both the Friday and Saturday. The times would then be aggregated. Testing could be curtailed to no more than 12 days of private sessions per team during the season and none allowed at any track where a Grand Prix is held.

That would have the merit of significant cost savings for teams, up to $30 million for the bigger teams and $250 million for the sport as a whole according to some estimates. The commission has 26 members, with 18 votes required to approve changes to the sporting regulations.

The teams have 12 votes, even though only 10 teams completed the season. The other votes go to Ecclestone, Mosley, eight race promoters - four of them from Europe - two sponsors, one engine supplier and a representative of the tyre manufacturers.

"Unless we have a majority of the teams in favour of a given change, we're not going to get it adopted because of the structure of the F1 commission," said Mosley. "If we don't get some sort of decision, we have to give thought to doing something more fundamental."

The FIA's Proposals at a Glance:

Driver Swaps

Drivers would no longer be contracted to individual teams but would be picked instead by the FIA. Each would drive for a different team in each of the first 10 races of the world championship, with teams to be decided by lot. After 10 races, the drivers could choose - with the Championship leader having first pick - which seven teams they finished the season with. Drivers would be paid out of a central fund.

FIA president Max Mosley says this is his favourite idea but nobody seriously believes it will happen. "The best driver and the best team would emerge and there would really be no doubt at the end of the season who was the best driver and which was the best team," Mosley said.

Qualifying

Qualifying to be aggregated over four half-hour sessions, two on Friday and two on Saturday, instead of one hour on Saturday as at present. The measure would give more meaning to a Friday currently devoted purely to free practice.

Tyres

Tyre companies, currently Bridgestone and Michelin, to be allowed to supply different compounds to each team - allowing them to have tailor-made tyres to fit their individual needs rather than one kind fitting all. Champions Ferrari are seen as having benefited from a particularly close relationship with Bridgestone, with their tyres and chassis designed in conjunction.

Ballast Handicaps

Bernie Ecclestone's suggestion - one kilo to be added to a driver's car for every point won. This proposal would be an alternative to driver swaps, since the two could not go together. "Whichever is the best team would actually win the championship with the kilo a point," says Mosley. "It's just that it will take them longer and it will be more difficult and they will win at the end of the season rather than at the beginning. It will be much, much more exciting."

Testing Limits

No testing on any circuit where a Formula One Championship event is held. No more than 12 days of private testing allowed during the season. This has the potential for huge cost savings as well as levelling the field at a time when smaller teams are struggling to survive. "The fundamental point is that you should have minimum testing and you should not have a separate test team," says Mosley. "A separate test team is an absurd expense."

Engines

The FIA already plans to limit teams to a single engine per car per weekend from 2004. This could be brought forward to 2003, with one engine to last four races in 2004. "At first sight you think this is completely mad but if you think about Le Mans, you can't win it if you can't do 5,000 km (with one racing engine)," says Mosley.

"All that would happen is that the engines would run slightly slower and they would be slightly less powerful. We all agree we want to reduce the power of the engines anyway. So we make the engines last longer. An engine that does 6,000 km costs exactly the same as an engine that does 600." Engine makers say it is already too late to introduce such a significant change for next season.

Long-Life Components

Gearbox assemblies and key components to last a specified number of races. "A gearbox nowadays is built like a Swiss watch," says Mosley. "It lasts for one race or a bit more and is replaced. There is no need to do that. A gearbox could last for half a season if it was bigger and heavier and stronger."

Bodywork

Two alternative sets of bodywork to be approved by each team before the start of the season. They can then be changed once during the season, after the halfway point. "The teams find a small advantage in the wind tunnel so they make a completely new engine cover for two hundredths of a second. It costs a fortune," says Mosley.

Standardised Parts

Standard electronic systems to be used, particularly engine control units, brakes and fixed ballast.

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