Teams challenge Minardi money

Ron Dennis wants to 'clarify' the Concorde Agreement

Formula One teams are to go to arbitration in the dispute over extra television money awarded to Minardi, McLaren boss Ron Dennis has confirmed.

Dennis said that McLaren, Williams, Jordan and British American Racing were taking the move to clarify the rules, rather than attack Minardi supremo Paul Stoddart.

This process is only seeking clarity and is not asking for the money back

Ron Dennis
McLaren

The sport's controller Bernie Ecclestone announced in June that Minardi would receive funds originally earmarked for the defunct Prost team.

Prost earned the cash for finishing 10th in the constructors' championship last season.

But with the departure of Prost, Ecclestone agreed to Stoddart's request that Minardi, who were 11th in 2001, should get the money.

Stoddart agreed that, as a condition of payment, to indemnify Ecclestone with interest if a court of arbitration subsequently ruled that he was not entitled to the Prost money.

Minardi are unable to afford the estimated $2m (£1.3m) cost of any action.

Minardi supremo Paul Stoddart

However, Dennis said that he wanted to shed light on the secret Concorde Agreement, which governs the sport.

"Nothing has been brought against Paul [Stoddart]," Dennis said.

"The fact is that there is ambiguity in the regulations regarding fiscal distribution, not only affecting this year but also other years and other teams.

"This process is only seeking clarity and is not asking for the money back.

"An arbitration process is laid down in the rules and, as no one could agree on the matter earlier in the year, is the only way of sorting the issue out.

I will turn my back on Formula One if this travesty of injustice is allowed to proceed

Paul Stoddart
Minardi

"Paul is caught up in that process but it is not personal. We had the opportunity to sort it out in Austria but this was not taken up.

"He has had the benefit of running this season but we need to sort the situation out before next year."

Stoddart had reacted to the move by threatening to quit the sport.

"I will turn my back on Formula One if this travesty of injustice is allowed to proceed," he said at the Japanese Grand Prix.

"I cannot afford four months of my time nor the $2m of costs that it will take to fund a challenge to this."