The financial crisis does not affect F1 according to Ecclestone

Bernie Ecclestone believes that Formula 1 has embarked on a path that allows it to remain unaffected by the financial crisis. He doesn’t think that the teams will have to make many concessions.

A reduction in budgets, along with changes to regulations, has appeared this winter. It was necessary since Honda decided to withdraw from the sport, and major financial partners such as ING or RBS have also announced their departure.

But the F1’s chief financial officer states that the sport is doing well and that instead of laying off staff, some teams will need to hire more during the season’s Grand Prix events.

“I don’t feel that this crisis is causing problems, which is a big surprise,” said Ecclestone in the pages of *The Guardian*.

« We might have thought that the teams would have less staff with a cost-cutting objective, but in the end, the opposite happened. »

However, while those present on race weekends might be less affected by the change in regulations, the ban on in-season experimentation and development is expected to lead to a reduction in staff in other areas.

According to Ecclestone, many countries are still eager to secure their place on the F1 calendar. He mentioned the case of Donington Park, which would allow securing the long-term future of the British Grand Prix.

« We are having difficulty with this race because we need a date. »

He added that if some stability is to be noted in F1 during the economic recession, it’s because it was anticipated.

« I have been saying for a long time that there would be a stock market crash, » concluded the Briton.