F1 Teams And Ecclestone Agree On New Concord Agreement, FIA Approval Still Missing

Mercedes F1 Team Principal Ross Brawn said that "F1 teams have broadly agreed to a hike in entry fees next year, and a new 'Concorde' commercial agreement could be signed very soon," according to Abhishek Takle of REUTERS. The teams, governing body FIA and commercial rights holder Bernie Ecclestone "have been working for months to hammer out a new agreement to secure the future of the sport." Brawn told reporters ahead of this weekend's Indian Grand Prix, "I think there was broad agreement on all the various points. There were no rebellions, let's put it that way. I think the level of the entry fee was discussed, the reasons why it needs to be what it is was discussed and in the end there was general consensus on what we're doing, so it was a fairly constructive meeting" (REUTERS, 10/25). MOTORSPORT-TOTAL.com's Sven Haidinger reported Brawn said that "it is now up to Ecclstone and FIA President Jean Todt to solve their differences." Brawn said, "There's is no more resistance on behalf of the teams. It didn't appear that there were any big problems left. I think it is going to be a fast process now" (MOTORSPORT-TOTAL.com, 10/25).