It is "accepted wisdom that in Formula One," the team with the "most money will win the most races," according to Brad Spurgeon of the N.Y. TIMES. As F1 staged its "last event of the season," it also delivered "the verdict in the real test of a team's strength, as defined by the 11 team owners and directors: who gets the most for their money." Despite "public perceptions that Formula One teams are having financial difficulties, there is plenty of money in the series." The team with the "biggest budget has not won the championship." Ferrari, with a series-leading estimated $402M, did not "win the title." Red Bull did, with the second-highest budget, $382M. Ferrari finished in third place. Mercedes ($259M) and Lotus ($211M), finished second and fourth, respectively. McLaren, like Mercedes, has a budget of $259M. Mercedes finished in second place, six points ahead of Ferrari, and McLaren beat out Force India ($162M) for fifth. Lotus and Mercedes clearly "have had far better results for their money than have Ferrari and McLaren." Mercedes Dir Ross Brawn said, "The principle is that a good big one will always beat a good little one." This, for team directors, is the "key to not only proving to the public which team is the strongest in sporting terms, but also in trying to appeal to sponsors and team owners, who want to get more results for less money" (N.Y. TIMES, 11/24).
