Q & A with John Howett

Q. How would you summarise the race?

John Howett: It was reasonable. We got good starts with both cars. Timo [Glock] had a rough second corner, so he lost a few places, but Jarno [Trulli] held well. The first stint wasn't as quick as I think we'd have hoped but it was a solid stint, and then he really got on the pace, and Timo was really quick all race to be honest.

Q. Do you think Toyota was the third best car?

JH: Yeah, sure. Two-and-a-half best, maybe.

Q. Do you expect a similar result at Silverstone?

JH: I think anyway having got here, I think what we determined to be the problem in sector three and in Monaco seems to be valid, so we feel that we've got even more that we can squeeze out of the car at Silverstone.

Q. Was it an aerodynamic problem?

JH: I don't really think so, no.

Q. There were rumours after Sunday morning's meeting that the FOTA teams might boycott the race...

JH: I don't know where this rubbish has come from. I hope you beat the people who put this around honestly, because sometimes we need to sort the wood out from the trees. I think ultimately FOTA wants to do the right things for the benefit of the sport and that includes the fans. We're really trying to stabilise Formula 1, put in a proper governance process which I hope will eradicate or significantly reduce the similar problems we've had over the last two or three years. That's the fundamental first issue.

Q. Is Friday a genuine deadline to resolve F1's future?

JH: I don't think that's necessarily completely our decision, is it. I can only talk from the perspective of Toyota, and I am just totally relaxed because personally I see upsides in many ways. In other words, we need to stabilise governance - that is a precondition of almost all the FOTA members, which seems more solid this weekend than ever before. If that happens then I think we feel comfortable. If not then we're forced into alternative scenarios, and in the end I believe that also holds a very bright future for the world of motorsport.

Q. How advanced is the planning for a breakaway championship? Have you got circuits lined up?

JH: That's a confidential internal matter within FOTA.

Q. Are there plans for FOTA to talk to the FIA this week?

JH: I don't think we resist doing that. I think Flavio [Briatore] was discussing that possibility and received information that it would be ill-advised to have a meeting before Friday. So I don't know. We remain open to discuss, but I think our position is fairly firm on the criteria that we wish to be resolved.

Q. Frank Williams said yesterday that his team had been expelled from FOTA...

JH: No, they have been temporarily suspended. If he wishes to withdraw that's another issue, but at the moment from FOTA's position we understood that they had a specific position unique to themselves, and therefore for the time being we've suspended them temporarily.

Q. There was a very small turn out of fans at Istanbul. Is that problem specific to Turkey or a wider concern?

JH: Again, I didn't speak to the promoter. I think the promoter told Flavio that they had been willing to do some fairly serious activities to increase the traffic, and they weren't encouraged to do so. I think we need to realise that we are in an economic situation where entry price to the tracks is important to the customers, but I think if you look at the viewing figures, that we receive at Toyota anyway, they are encouraging. Our sport is as strong, if not stronger, than it's ever been.

Q. But a sport with no live support is not a healthy sport...

JH: Certainly. I do recognise that. But it's a situation partially beyond our control, and one has to say if you look at the viewing figures it indicates that the product is very strong. You have to question if potentially the price of entry is too high or what we need to do to improve that. But FOTA has always made it clear that it is very open to work with the commercial rights holder to improve this.

Q. If Friday's decision goes against you, do you have time to start an alternate series before next year?

JH: It's partly a hypothetical question, but I don't think it's an insurmountable problem. I want to emphasise again that it is not the sole, unique target of FOTA. If we're forced into that position, I think as a defensive strategy, it's something that has to be part of our scenario planning. And it has been for some time.

Q. Every day that passes is less time to find a solution to this crisis...

JH: But my understanding is that the position of FOTA is very simple. It's about fundamentally governance; there are also one or two issues of methodology of managing, shall we say, resource control, or reduction. And I think the FOTA requests are extremely reasonable.

Q. Is it true that five major FOTA teams agreed a penalty fee in case of...

JH: I'm not really prepared to discuss the detail. But it's clear that there is an agreement between teams that they won't act without advising the others of their intention, and that it's been checked by all of the professional lawyers who are working in this environment, and they're absolutely adamant that it's nothing to do with commercial activities.

It's purely about entry, not boycott, and it is a positive an entirely legal document. And I think it's really just a commitment of trust among teams that they won't act in a unilateral way, but that they will advise their colleagues of their intent so that everybody can act accordingly. It's a very simple, professional and positive document.