Motorsport: Brawn still hopeful of FIA deal

Jenson Button's team owner Ross Brawn said yesterday that he is hopeful the FOTA teams and the FIA will find a solution to their ongoing problems before the final deadline expires this Friday for the teams to remove the conditions of their entries to next year's world championship.

If they do not enter without condition, they face exclusion in favour of new teams such as Prodrive and Lola.

As talks between the two parties continued, amid criticism of the governance of the sport from the ACEA, the European car manufacturers' association, Brawn said: "All of us - and I mean this collectively - have got ourselves into a situation we need to learn from.

"What we want to get back and put in place again is an agreement between the teams and the FIA on governance for the future, and how we can avoid these situations ever occurring again. There are still opportunities to resolve the issues, and if they are, then we will be happy to enter."

If Brawn GP do not withdraw the conditions they placed on their entry, Button will not have a car to drive next year, but Brawn said they would be standing firm with the other four FOTA teams - McLaren Mercedes, BMW Sauber, Toyota and Renault - and would go along with their strategy.

"FOTA have been supportive of Brawn GP. The manufacturers want to support small independents. This is not a manufacturers' association, it's an association of Formula One teams, and we believe in FOTA's principles. So we want to support the group in trying to find a solution. We, as small independents, balance up the group with the manufacturers."

- THE INDEPENDENT