F1: Resource Restriction Still Active, Says Domenicali

Formula 1

F1: Resource Restriction Still Active, Says Domenicali

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali says the RRA is alive but in flux...

Adam Cooper | http://www.speedtv.com | Posted January 11, 2012 Balen (BEL)

For now, Stefano Domenicali doesn't expect any key players to be let go at Ferrari. (Photo: Getty Images)

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali has stressed that 2012 will be a busy year behind the scenes for F1, as the new Concorde Agreement is finalized and the Resource Restriction Agreement continues to be a major focus.

Domenicali said Wednesday that the RRA is still very much alive, despite the fact that Ferrari and others have left FOTA. However, its precise form remains fluid.

“Clearly this is a very important year and we are all aware of that,” said Domenicali of the Concorde. “It is equally clear that there is only one offer on the table, given that no alternative solutions were ever established.

“In the coming months, talks will get under way on the future of the Agreement as we are still in discussion, especially with the bigger teams, despite the fact we have left FOTA, on the subject of cost reduction, discussions where Ferrari has always been at the forefront.

“Furthermore, one must bear in mind that the RRA is still in force. What still needs to be established – and this something we are looking at in these days – is if we should abide by the first version, signed in 2009, or the one drawn up in Singapore in 2010. The first one envisages very severe spending cuts for 2012, the year it should run out, while the one signed in Singapore has a revised figure and is valid right up to the end of 2017.

“The key point is to understand if this is an important tool for the future. What should happen to those who do not abide by the rules? Today, only a financial type of penalty is planned, but we need to decide if it would not be better to think also of something on the sporting front and, in that case, who should decide the outcome.”

Adam Cooper notched up his 26th season as a racing journalist in 2010. He has written about F1 for SPEED.com since 2005. Follow him on Twitter.