Dennis Supports Breakaway Series

McLaren team boss Ron Dennis has backed carmakers in their plans to introduce a rival series to Formula One.

Ford, Fiat, DaimlerChrysler, Renault and BMW plan to set up a rival series in a bid to have more control. The manufacturers are unhappy with the Kirch Group's majority stake in SLEC - Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One holding company which holds the marketing and commercial rights to the sport.

The carmakers want a greater say in the running of the sport and Dennis has backed their plans for a rival series.

"Kirch has put nothing back into motor racing," Dennis said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. "For that reason I feel concerned and the teams are very receptive to proposals from manufacturers who have a vested interest in F1 and want to see it thrive."

"All the teams are together in trying to follow a path which provides a stable environment in which we need to compete," Dennis added. "The new series is a sort of self-protection mechanism."

Dennis said that he feels Ecclestone destabilized the sport by selling the majority stake in SLEC to the Kirch group, but admitted the sport's ringmaster has a difficult job.

"Sometimes it's difficult to buy into the belief that his motives are consistent with other teams," Dennis said. "He's got a difficult job trying to choose his end game and making sure it's not against the interest of the people who run the teams, who are his friends."