MARCH 29, 2002

Teams to challenge the new engine rule?

WE hear that McLaren and Williams may be willing to challenge the new one engine per weekend rule agreed recently by the World Motor Sports Council. The argument is that although the FIA has managed to achieve its goals by using the sporting regulations it needs to sort out the technical details of the new rules and this means that it is actually a change in the technical rules - which is not acceptable at such short notice. Such a challenge would have to be mounted in the International Chamber of Commerce at Lausanne (an arbitration process laid down to deal with disputes over the Concorde Agreement).

The teams have yet to confirm that this is what is happening but there are few doubts that there is a lot of bad feeling about the changes which have been made - oon both sides of the argument.