Small Teams will Always be Vulnerable, Says Mosley

The collapse of Prost will have little impact on Formula One and smaller teams will always be vulnerable, FIA president Max Mosley said on Tuesday.

"It will have little effect and there is not much that can be done to protect the smaller teams," the International Automobile Federation (FIA) head said in a written reply to questions from Reuters.

A French court formally ordered Prost's liquidation on Monday, with the team's debts estimated at $28 million.

"There have been more than 50 different teams in Formula One in the last 30 years," added Mosley. Asked whether he feared other teams might follow Prost, he replied: "It is always possible.

"The smaller teams are constantly in a difficult situation, because the amount of media coverage they receive is significantly smaller than that of the big teams, but they need comparable budgets to compete. This has been the problem in Formula One for at least the last 50 years."

With newcomers Toyota making their debut this season after deferring their arrival in 2001, Formula One had been on course for a full complement of 12 teams until Prost went into receivership last November. There will now be just 11, like last season, although Mosley said the rules did allow another team taking Prost's place this year.

"Someone could buy the assets and compete in Prost's place, subject to certain conditions, but it would have to be this year, starting in Australia," he said. "Otherwise, the slot becomes vacant and could be filled by any suitable team."

Under Formula One rules, any new applicant to compete in the Championship must deposit $48 million with the FIA when submitting an application.

The sum is returned if the application is rejected or in instalments once the team has competed in its first race. It is forfeited if the team fails to appear for the Championship, however if they defer for a year they would only lose $12 million of the fee.

The new season starts in Melbourne on March 3 and Prost, with no drivers under contract, would have had to run with their old chassis and 2000 Ferrari engines. The team's assets are now scheduled to be sold off with staff being made redundant.

Mosley said a reduction in the number of Formula One teams would not be significant unless the number fell to eight or below.

"At one time, some Grands Prix only allowed 16 starters, even when more cars were available," he said.