Formula One Teams’ Association Disbands

After only six years in operation, the Formula One Teams’ Association (FOTA) has been disbanded.

FOTA was set up by the teams in the face of the economic crisis in 2008, with Honda having already pulled out of the sport and both Toyota and BMW set to follow suit. FOTA’s strongest stand came in 2009 when it threatened to set up a breakaway series in the face of the FIA’s planned $40million budget cap, eventually signing up to race in 2010 when those plans were dropped.

The aim of the association was to give the teams a unified voice on the future of F1. However, Red Bull, Ferrari,Toro Rosso and Sauber pulled out in 2011, leaving just seven teams in the association.

Oliver Weingarten, secretary general of FOTA, confirmed via Twitter that the association had been broken up.

“I can confirm that FOTA has today been disbanded as a result of its members having re-evaluated their requirements in the face of a changing political and commercial landscape in Formula 1,” he said.

Martin Whitmarsh, the former McLaren team principal, had been the most recent chairman of the association, with Eric Boullier his vice chairman. However, Boullier has since effectively taken Whitmarsh’s role at McLaren having been named racing director after leaving Lotus.

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