F1: Small teams ramp up pressure on Red Bull spending

From GMM

The small teams are continuing to heap pressure on Red Bull, casting the energy drink company as a barrier to reducing costs in formula one.

On Monday in Monaco, the teams got together with Bernie Ecclestone and FIA president Jean Todt, with cost-cutting a headline subject of discussion.

Germany's Auto Motor und Sport reports that Todt indicated that the Paris based federation is willing to police cost cutting as part of the formal regulations in 2013 and beyond.

Ten of the 12 teams are pushing for that scenario, the only exceptions being Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso -- the two teams owned by Dietrich Mateschitz.

Sauber chiefs Peter Sauber and Monisha Kaltenborn were heavily critical of Red Bull last week, insisting some in F1 "don't care whether (the sport) is even here in ten years".

For the smaller teams, the situation is urgent because if there is no agreement before June 30, cost-cutting FIA regulations cannot be in force for 2013.

Williams shareholder Toto Wolff has now joined Sauber in pushing Red Bull to move.

"At the moment they spend an estimated EUR 250 million (per season)," he said, "so the cost ceiling would save Mr Mateschitz a hundred million euros."

"It would be doing him a favour, because his model of unlimited spending no longer has the same advantage due to the current rules. The results of the first six races should have convinced him," added Wolff.