Alonso ready to race elsewhere

Double World Champion Fernando Alonso has no qualms about quitting Formula One if FIA President Max Mosley's controversial 45 million (US$ 62m) budget cap deal is implemented next year.

The Spaniard is squarely siding with the Formula One Teams Association in their belief that the sport will be severely diluted if an agreement is not reached between the eight opposing teams and the FIA.

"I would prefer to race in any category before the new F1," Alonso was quoted as declaring by the Daily Record.

"The teams have done their maximum," he said, referring to the cost-cutting proposals presented to Mosley by the FOTA teams, which span a three-year period instead of implementing drastic cuts coming into effect within a few months.

The Renault driver claimed that teams cannot "suddenly move" from 500m budgets to 45m, even if certain salaries and marketing expenses are not affected by the Mosley plan.

The Renault, Ferrari, Toyota, McLaren, Brawn, BMW, Red Bull and Toro Rosso teams filed their entries for the 2010 season under the condition that an agreement be reached with Mosley by June 12th, the date upon which the FIA will be publishing the entry list for next year's championship.
Click here to find out more!


However, the FOTA members also demanded that their entry forms be handled as a whole, meaning they should all be accepted - or rejected - by Mosley as one group.

There exists a risk that the eight allied teams could be blocked out of the sport and replaced by new outfits which have already pledged their acceptance of the 45m budget cap in order to enter the series.

If such were to happen, the FOTA members will explore alternatives to Formula One.

And if a new high-profile series organised by the FOTA teams should become reality, Alonso has already announced his interest in signing up.

"If the manufacturers organise a parallel event, that would be interesting as you would see the technology and the fastest cars in the world," he stated.

The drivers of all eight 'rebel' teams declared their support for the FOTA initiative.