F1 "has dropped its plans for a cost cap" in '15 after leading teams said that "they were opposed to the idea," according to Andrew Benson of the BBC. FIA President Jean Todt said that cost-cutting "will instead be achieved through rule changes." The six teams in the sport's rule-defining strategy group "rejected plans for a cap agreed earlier this year." And Todt said he could not impose the cap "if the commercial rights holder [F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone] and six teams are against it" (BBC, 4/7). REUTERS' Alan Baldwin reported Force India Deputy Team Principal Bob Fernley, one of the five teams without a vote and a critic of the strategy group, "expressed disappointment." Fernley: "That shows the frailty of the system as it is today. I think you need regulation to help but you also need cost control." Attempts to curb spending "have fallen apart in the past," with the sport split between big-spending companies such as Red Bull and others "competing on a fraction of the big teams' budgets" (REUTERS, 4/7). The PA noted Force India has "vowed to show no let-up in their bid to introduce a cost cap." Fernley: "Force India have just proved you don't have to keep spending money to put on a good show, and this race was testament to Formula One putting on a fantastic show." Asked whether cost control could be achieved through the regulations, Fernley added, "I think you need both. You need regulations to help, but you also need cost control, and I don't think we'll change our opinion on that. We have to get the teams viable for the sustainability of the sport" (PA, 4/7).
