Mercedes Thinking About Partially Withdrawing From F1 Starting In 2014

Auto manufacturer Mercedes-Benz is considering partial withdrawal from F1 at the end of '13, according to AUTOHEBDO.fr. The team is looking to get rid of a "costly team with deceiving results, while continuing to profit from its benefits" (AUTOHEBDO.fr, 8/14). MOTORSPORT.com wrote that the Stuttgart-based company has "yet to agree" to a new Concorde Agreement deal with F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone and thus starting in '14 could field a "semi-official" team. They would continue to supply customer engines while their "semi-official" works team might be known as "AMG F1." AMG is Mercedes' "high-performance arm." Brackley-based AMG F1, currently known as Mercedes AMG, would "continue to be run by team boss Ross Brawn, with Michael Schumacher in the cockpit." However, Mercedes would focus "more strongly on engineering than team ownership and management." Some of the reasons for the rumored change are the corruption scandal involving Ecclestone, his push for Mercedes to make a "long-term pledge to the sport," and Mercedes' lack of success with its full works team since '10 (MOTORSPORT.com, 8/14).