Sauber Team Principal Monisha Kaltenborn said that the team followed Force India in asking F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone for an advance on its Formula 1 championship payments "to prevent its rival gaining a competitive advantage," according to Lawrence Barretto of AUTOSPORT. Force India "made its request, which is believed to have been accepted, in October with Sauber and Manor following suit when they were made aware of it." The requests "require unanimous consent from the other teams before Ecclestone can facilitate them." Kaltenborn said, "We saw some of our competitors had done that and that can give you a direct competitive advantage. So we felt that when our competitors had done it, it would definitely make our life easier, so that's why we did it. If you can make your liquidity easier, of course it helps the company." Teams "receive payments from Formula One Management on a monthly basis." These "are paid from February through to November, leaving a cash shortfall for December and January when key production takes place" (AUTOSPORT, 12/8).
