Pollock: F1 should use identical parts

Pollock maintained F1 will be affected by the expected economic downturn sparked by the September 11 terrorist attacks. To counteract this, he suggested teams use the same brakes and other components to reduce development costs.

"What the teams have to look at is which areas of the car are you always going to continuously develop?" said the Scot. "It may sound a stupid idea, but should all teams be expected to be running exactly the same brakes? Should all teams be running exactly the same wheels, or the same uprights, or wishbones?"

Pollock's predictions of F1 being hurt by a recession have already come true, with Prost Grand Prix being put into receivership last week. The French team blamed "the unfavourable general economic context of 2001" as one of the sources of its troubles, but Pollock says that by forcing teams to use the same components, costs would be reduced - and teams not backed by a major manufacturer has more chance of survival.

"To be able to compete with Jaguar, Renault and especially Toyota - companies that fully own F1 teams - the way they are going to invest money there is no independent team that can do that," explained Pollock. "It should be looked at (harmonising components). There will be arguments for and against, but doing that you would substantially reduce costs."

In the Q&A, Pollock also talks about:

How the whole of Formula 1 will be affected by a recession
How he rates his team's progress in 2001
His hopes on developing the relationship with engine manufacturer Honda
What he thinks of Jacques Villeneuve's criticism of the team
His views on Takuma Sato's switch from BAR to Jordan

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