US F1 fined and disqualified

US Formula One has been slapped with a hefty fine of 309,000 Euros after it failed to make its entry into the 2010 Formula One season.

The decision automatically disqualifies the country’s racing team from participating in any Federation Internationale de l’Automobile championship.

US F1 has intended to enter Formula One this season but shortly before the opening round it said it would not be ready in time. The FIA’s World Motor Sports Council (WMSC) held a hearing in Paris on June 24 to decide the team’s punishment.

The team claimed at the hearing they had no choice but to pull out. They said uncertainty about the signing of a new Concorde Agreement – the commercial agreement between F1 teams and the series management – and proposed budget-cap rules had hit their preparations.

They also said negative comments by Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone about their chances of making the grid had deterred sponsors.

The FIA said the WMSC did not accept US F1’s arguments and “considered that the team, whilst well-intentioned, had displayed poor financial management and had underestimated the requirement to present an F1 car for the 2010 season in time and with the financial resources available to them.”