SILVERSTONE, England — McLaren chief Martin Whitmarsh told Formula One’s governing body Saturday that any peace deal must be reached before the end of July to prevent the British team and seven others from forming a rival series next season.
While FIA president Max Mosley remains confident of a resolution, Whitmarsh said that the point of no return with the Formula One Teams Association series is fast approaching.
“I don’t think it’s days, but think it’s weeks rather than many months,” Whitmarsh said in an interview with The Associated Press. “I think by the end of July everybody is going to be progressively on diverging paths, so whatever separates us today will be greater by then.
“We are obliged to start planning now, which means entering into arrangements — and so has the FIA — so both parties have to plan on the assumption that they are doing things separately. Progressively those plans and arrangements became locked in place.”
Finding a resolution will be hindered by the FIA’s plans to sue McLaren and the other FOTA teams, citing “serious violations of law” in creating the rival series.
The breakaway by McLaren, Ferrari, Renault, BMW Sauber, Toyota, Brawn GP, Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso was announced Thursday after the teams refused to enter the 2010 championship that featured the FIA’s voluntary $65 million budget cap.
“The FOTA had no alternative if they were to stay together than to decide that it would proceed with its own championship arrangements,” Whitmarsh said. “You can’t say that and then don’t do it. So you’ve got to proceed, not to be provocative or aggressive, but because time is moving and you’ve got to.”
FOTA members continued a second day of planning Saturday for that championship and Whitmarsh said there are no financial impediments to launching it. He added that the rival series could operate with eight teams, but that other interested parties have already been in contact.
“We’ve had a lot of interest expressed even in the last few hours from teams, circuits and media companies and we are having a meeting on Tuesday. Clearly people see this as an opportunity,” Whitmarsh said at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. “It would be healthy if we were open to new teams.”
Whitmarsh acknowledges that a unified F1 series is still the ideal scenario.
“We are not interested in winning or losing or the personalities or egos,” he said. “What we want is what’s best for the sport, what’s best for this business and what’s best for the fans — and that probably is to have an accommodation between the factions that aren’t currently agreeing.”
Indeed, Bernie Ecclestone, F1’s commercial rights holder, proposed Saturday that teams should be allowed to carry on spending — and not subjected to a cap — providing they sign up to the FIA championship for at least the next five years. It appears, though, that Mosley isn’t going to back Ecclestone.
“I sympathize with (the teams) in a lot of ways,” Ecclestone said. “They say, ‘Nobody should tell us how to spend our money. We know what to do.’ And I say providing they commit to the championship for at least five years, they should spend what they like.”
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