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2010 Formula One season
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2010 FIA Formula One World Championship season

Jenson Button, 2009 World Champion with Brawn GP. Button is yet to confirm the team he will drive for in 2010.

The 2010 Formula One season will be the 61st Formula One season. The technical and sporting regulations applicable for this season have been, and continue to be, the subject of much debate. Jenson Button will enter the 2010 season attempting to defend his World Championship.

Contents
* 1 Dispute over regulations and breakaway series
* 2 Teams and drivers
o 2.1 New entries process
* 3 2010 Calendar
* 4 Changes
o 4.1 Driver changes
o 4.2 Team changes
o 4.3 Calendar changes
o 4.4 Rule changes
o 4.5 Sponsorship changes
* 5 References

Dispute over regulations and breakaway series
Main article: FIA-FOTA dispute

The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) planned to introduce a budget cap to reduce costs in order to safeguard the sport during the current economic downturn. The proposal included an optional budget cap of thirty-million Euros, with greater technical and design freedoms allowed to teams who nominated to use it.

The teams objected to what they believed to be two sets of rules within the championship and five of the teams within the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA), Ferrari, BMW Sauber, Renault, Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso announced their intentions to withdraw from the 2010 championship.[citation needed] BMW Sauber announced on 29 July that they were withdrawing from Formula One at the end of the 2009 season.[1]

Following a discussion, all ten of the FOTA teams unanimously decided to withdraw at the end of the 2009 season unless the budget cap rules were changed.[2] Williams and Force India both later submitted their own entries and were temporarily suspended from FOTA.

The remaining FOTA teams all submitted conditional entries for the 2010 season before the entry list was published on June 12, which included all ten current teams and three new teams, Campos Meta Team, Manor Grand Prix and US F1.[3]

Discussions between the FIA and FOTA failed to find a resolution and the eight FOTA teams announced their intentions to form a breakaway series for 2010.[4] However after a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council on 24 June, FOTA agreed to remain in Formula One and Max Mosley agreed to not to stand for re-election in October.[5]

However, on 8 July, the FOTA group of teams walked out of a meeting with the FIA about future rules.[6] FOTA were informed that they were not entered for the 2010 season and could therefore have no input on regulatory discussions.[7] It was later announced that plans for a breakaway series were still being pursued.[8]

FOTA have since expressed their interest in ending the conflict by negotiating the terms of a new Concorde Agreement directly with CVC, the company that controls the commercial rights to the sport, with a resolution possibly being found in time for the Hungarian Grand Prix.[9]

On 1 August it was announced that the FIA had signed the new Concorde Agreement, bringing an end to the crisis and securing the sport's future until 2012.[10]

Bernie Ecclestone has repeatedly stated his belief that several of the new teams will be unable to prepare in time for 2010 due to the lack of the FIA's cost cutting plans.[11]

New entries process

The FIA announced its intention to open up the grid, aiming for a total of 14 teams. The FIA revealed that it received 15 entries from new teams (in addition to the 10 teams currently involved in Formula One) for 2010.[31] The existing F1 teams, under the FOTA organisation, are understood to have agreed a system of technical support to assist new teams.[32] This compromise proposal would involve the supply of parts and design knowledge to the new entrants, but not full customer cars, in return for which the budget cap idea was dropped.

The four new teams are:

* Campos Meta Team, Spanish-based GP2 team led by former racing driver Adrián Campos, who lodged an entry for his Campos Racing team in conjunction with Meta Image.[33]
* Team US F1,[34][35][36] a group led by designer Ken Anderson and former Williams employee Peter Windsor.[37]
* Manor Grand Prix,[38] headed by F3 owner John Booth and former team owner Nick Wirth was an unknown entrant until the FIA published the 2010 entry list on 12 June 2009.
* Lotus F1 Team,[39] a partnership between the Malaysian government and a consortium of Malaysian entrepreneurs. Mike Gascoyne, whose previous Lotus entry with Litespeed was unsuccessful will be the technical director.

The unsuccessful applicants are known to include:

* Prodrive F1, led by Aston Martin chairman and Prodrive founder David Richards, announced their application to enter Formula One with financial backing from Dar Capital.[40] This followed a previous attempt to join F1 in 2008.
* Lola Cars,[41] British racing car constructor Lola Cars, which has been involved in Formula One several times in its history, confirmed that it submitted an entry for the 2010 championship.[42] Although the FIA asked that Lola be placed on standby in the event of a team withdrawing, on June 17 the company announced that it had requested its entry be officially withdrawn.[43]
* March Racing Organisation[44]
* Team Superfund, a new team established by former driver Alexander Wurz and funded by Christian Baha, the owner of Superfund Group[45]
* Epsilon Euskadi, an established Spanish team which has run cars in various junior single-seater formulae, and has also built its own Le Mans Prototype.[46] Epsilon remains interested in securing an entry for 2010, following the withdrawal of the BMW Sauber team.[47]
* Team Lotus,[48] established by Formula Three team Litespeed and designer Mike Gascoyne who had recently parted with Force India, and purchased rights to the Lotus name from David Hunt.[49][50]
* N.Technology,[51] lodged application following success in World Touring Car Championship, but withdrew its entry following FOTA's announcement of a breakaway series, not wanting to be involved in a series without the presence of the manufacturers.[52]
* Brabham, team established by German company Formtech, led by Franz Hilmer, acquired the rights to the Brabham Grand Prix name and submitted an entry for the 2010 Formula 1 season. Formtech had already purchased the assets of the Super Aguri Formula 1 team in June 2008, after Super Aguri's bankruptcy in May 2008.[53][54] According to previous reports the former Force India managing director Colin Kolles was also involved in the project.[55] The original Brabham founder Jack Brabham was not consulted on the use of his former team's name, and the Brabham family have threatened to take legal action against the usage of their name.[56]
* myf1dream.com,[57] a proposed team established by fans of the sport and supported by their donations.
* Stefan Grand Prix,[58] a team backed by Serbian engineering company AMCO and named for team principal Zoran Stefanovic. The entry remained unknown until August when Stefanovic lodged a complaint with the European Commission, of a similar nature to that of N.Technology.[59] On September 29, Stefanovic announced his plans to compete in Bahrain, despite not having an entry for the 2010 season.[60]

Experienced sports car team Ray Mallock Limited had originally intended to submit an entry[61] and run with the Cosworth spec engine, but ultimately decided against it, citing the current budget cap row and uncertainty over the 2010 regulations as reasons for their decision.[62] They have not, however, ruled out a future entry bid.

On 29 July 2009, BMW Sauber announced that they were withdrawing from Formula One at the end of the 2009 Formula One season.[1] BMW chairman Norbert Reithofer cited a lack of future viability and sustainability for the Formula One program.[63] On August 6, it was announced that BMW had failed to find a buyer for the team in time, meaning the team would be unable to sign the 2009 Concorde Agreement.[64] The FIA announced that the vacant slot would be made available again in order to keep a 26 car grid.[65] On August 8, the FIA re-opened the selection process to decide the thirteenth and final grid opening and placed the seven reserve teams on alert.[66] Although Peter Sauber attempted to rescue the remains of the team with a management buy-out,[67] teams including Epsilon Euskadi signalled their interest in taking up the vacancy left by BMW's departure.[68] Lotus was ultimately announced to have gained the empty slot on 15 September 2009; while BMW's bid was considered "impressive", uncertainty over the ownership led to Lotus gaining the slot.

Changes
Driver changes

* Giancarlo Fisichella will become Ferrari's reserve and test driver in 2010, having left Force India and joined Ferrari towards the end of 2009 as a substitute for the injured Felipe Massa. However, Ferrari announced that Fisichella could be loaned out to another team if he is offered a race seat.[15]
* Fernando Alonso will leave Renault to drive for Ferrari in 2010, as a replacement for Kimi Räikkönen who is leaving the team at the end of the current season.[74] Alonso has signed a three year deal up to the end of 2012, with options for further years.
* Robert Kubica will leave BMW Sauber to drive for Renault in 2010, as a replacement for Alonso.
* Nico Rosberg confirmed he will leave Williams at the end of the 2009 season after four years with the team, but gave no indication as to who he would be racing for in 2010.[75]
* Bruno Senna, nephew of three-time World Champion Ayrton Senna, will join Campos Meta in 2010, returning the Senna name to Formula One sixteen years after his uncle's death.[13]
* Rubens Barrichello will move from Brawn to Williams.[28]
* Nico Hülkenberg, 2009 GP2 Series champion, will make his debut in Formula One with Williams, alongside Barrichello.[28]

Team changes

* Three new teams were originally selected to join the grid for the 2010 season. Team US F1, Campos Meta Team and Manor Grand Prix filled the three vacant spaces after being selected from fifteen entries.[38]
* On 29 July 2009, BMW Sauber announced that they were withdrawing from Formula One at the end of the 2009 Formula One season.[1] BMW chairman Norbert Reithofer cited a lack of future viability and sustainability for the Formula One program.[63] Their space on the entry list was taken by the Lotus F1 Team, although BMW have found a buyer in Qadbak Investments Limited. They have been granted the "14th spot" on the grid (i.e. first reserves if another team leaves) and the FIA are looking into the possibility of opening the grid up to 28 cars to allow the old BMW Sauber team to compete in 2010 regardless.[76] The FIA have announced they would "consult urgently" with the current teams, with the possibility of Sauber being added as a 14th team for the 2010 season.[29] On the weekend of the 2009 Japanese Grand Prix, however, several teams announced their intentions to block Sauber's entry, citing an unwillingness to amend the Concorde Agreement for one team, and an unease over the mystery surrounding the owners as their reasons for hesitating, particularly after one of Qadbak's representatives – British businessman Russell King – had assets seized in a court case.[77][78] This means that Sauber's only hope of joining the 2010 season lies in one of the thirteen already accepted teams pulling out.[78] If allowed to race in the 2010 season, the team will use Ferrari engines.[79]
* Following the withdrawal of BMW Sauber, the FIA announced their vacant grid position would be filled by Lotus F1 Team.[17]
* Toyota announced their withdrawal from Formula One with immediate effect on November 4, 2009, citing economic hardship as their reason for withdrawing. This paves the way for the Qadbak-backed Sauber team to re-join the grid.[30] However, as Toyota had signed the Concorde Agreement at the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix, they have the right to sell the team on if they choose to exercise that right, with reports suggesting a management buyout is being explored.[80]
* Responding to speculation that they would join BMW and Toyota in withdrawing, Renault denied that they would take the opportunity and instead assess their position, with a full announcement expected before the end of 2009.[81] Should Renault choose to depart the sport, Ferrari would become the only manufacturer in the sport with a full World Championship campign, a situaton the team has criticised.[82]

Calendar changes

* The British Grand Prix was due to move from Silverstone Circuit to Donington Park in 2010,[83] but on October 23, 2009, the owners of Donington Park admitted that plans to raise one £135 million through a bond had failed, leaving them just two days to find a solution or risk being in breach of contract with Formula One Management and therefore losing the rights to the British Grand Prix.[84] Bernie Ecclestone has since confirmed that Donington will not host the race and is negotiating with the BRDC, Silverstone's owners.[85]
* The title of the race in Valencia in June has also been left open, with the possiblity that it could use the Mediterranean Grand Prix name so as to free up the European Grand Prix title for Silverstone, if Donington Park is unable to host the British event. Alternatively, the Valencian round could be known as the Spanish Grand Prix while the race in Barcelona would be called the Andorran or Catalan Grand Prix,[86] similar to the approach used in 1997: the German Grand Prix was at Hockenheim and the European Grand Prix was at Jerez; the race at the Nurburgring was known as the Luxembourg Grand Prix.
* The Japanese Grand Prix was due to return to Fuji Speedway for 2010, as part of a year-on-year rotation with Suzuka Circuit. However, Fuji's owners Toyota announced that they had abandoned plans for Fuji to hold the race, citing the global recession as the main reason for this.[87] Suzuka will continue to hold the event in 2010 and in 2011.[88]
* The Canadian Grand Prix will return in 2010 after its one-year absence.[86]
* South Korea is to make its first appearance on the F1 calendar under the name Korean Grand Prix with a race being held at the Korean International Circuit in Yeongam on October 17 (subject to the circuit's completion in time).

Rule changes

Proposed

* A budget cap of £40m ($63.7m, €45.4m) was originally proposed for 2010, with teams choosing to take up the budget cap being allowed greater technical freedom, together with unlimited testing. Teams choosing not to take up the budget cap would have been able to spend freely, but with technical and testing constraints.[89] However, the budget cap idea was dropped following the political crisis in the middle of the season.

Confirmed

* Refuelling is to be abolished for the first time since 1993.[90] As a consequence, the cars will be allowed to refuel after the third part of qualifying.[91] The 2010 F1 cars should look a little more bloated in the tail end with the larger fuel tank fit between driver and engine. Despite the resolution over the budget cap meaning that the 2010 regulations would default back to the 2009 rules, FOTA have expressed interest in a refuelling ban as it represents a way to cut costs.[92]
* The maximum number of cars allowed to take part in a race shall be increased from 24 to 26 cars.[89]
* Formula One Management will offer financial support to all new teams from next season, in the form of $10m (£6.25m, €6.8m) along with the free transportation of two chassis and 10,000 kg (22,049 lbs) of freight to each race.[93]
* FOTA has agreed to scrap KERS for 2010 due to poor uptake and pressure from FIA to cut costs, although KERS is not banned in the regulations.[94]
* The minimum car weight will be increased from 605 kg to 620 kg (1,334 lbs to 1,367 lbs) to stop taller and heavier drivers being at a disadvantage if KERS is added to their car, which will still be allowed in 2010, despite FOTA's agreement not to use the system.[95]
* The qualifying system will change to accommodate the extra cars: 8 cars will drop out of the first qualifying session, 8 from the second and as in 2009, 10 cars will shoot-out for pole in the third session. The third session will now be run in low-fuel configuration due to the refuelling ban.[96]
* Wheel covers which have been used by the teams since 2006 are also set to be banned for 2010
* During negotiations of a new Concorde Agreement at the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix, several details[97] emerged of cost-cutting proposals by the teams including:

* Homologation of front and rear wings.
* A limit on the number of aerodynamic upgrades permitted over the course of a season.
* A continuation of the ban on in-season testing introduced for 2009.
* Restrictions on the number of team personnel who can attend a Grand Prix weekend.
* Complete closures of team factories over the mid-season summer break.

Sponsorship changes

* ING originally decided to end its involvement with Formula One at the end of the 2009 season, which included title sponsorship of Reanult along with the Australian, Hungarian and Belgian Grands Prix. The company cited the global economic crisis as the reason for its decision not to renew its involvement.[71]. However, in the wake of the Singapore investigations, the company decided to terminate the sponsorship with Renault early after Renault was found guilty of having fixed the race.
* Watch brand TW Steel has been confirmed as the first new sponsor of the Renault F1 Team, as the "Official Timing Partner", in a three-year deal running until 2012.
* RBS will also not renew its sponsorship of Williams beyond the end of 2010. RBS will also cancel its trackside sponsorship as of the start of 2010.[98]
* YouTube founder Chad Hurley has joined Team US F1 as the team's primary investor, though it is unclear whether the cars will carry YouTube logos.[99]
* Virgin Group have bought a 20% stake of Manor Grand Prix and plan to rename the team.[100] This is somewhat at odds with Richard Branson's comments that he would not decide upon a future deal with Brawn until after the 2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.[101] There is the possibility that Virgin could sponsor both Brawn and Manor, in the manner of Red Bull sponsoring both their namesake and Toro Rosso, or Santander sponsoring both McLaren and Ferrari.
* In August 2009, Brawn Grand Prix announced that they had secured funding for the team for the next three seasons, including the possibility of a title sponsor. The identities of the sponsors remain unknown for the time being, with the team claiming that uncertainty over the future of the sport prevented them from finding a major sponsor sooner.[102]
* At the 2009 Italian Grand Prix, Banco Santander announced a five-year deal with Ferrari to become the team's "main" sponsor starting in 2010;[103] McLaren later announced that their partnership with Banco Santander had been extended.[104] This means that Banco Santander will sponsor both teams from 2010.