Customer cars may break F1 crisis stalemate

May 27 (GMM) After hours of meetings, the F1 teams' rules dispute with Max Mosley may have moved closer than ever to a resolution on Wednesday.

After a further meeting in London, it was rumoured that the FOTA alliance, despite kicking out former champions Williams, finally agreed to essentially accept a compromise offered at Monaco by the FIA president.

It is believed that Mosley had signalled a willingness to agree to a so-called 'glide-path' for his budget cap, with 2010 a transition year: a compromise position apparently actively urged on by McLaren and Mercedes.

Germany's Auto Motor und Sport believes the main stumbling block now is the teams' desire for a 100m euro cap next year; a huge step away from Mosley's desire to woo new entrants to the sport with an immediate 45m cap.

The compromise deal's sweetener, however, could be the technical compromises potentially on offer to new entrants, primarily the permitted use of customer cars in 2010, until the budget cap is lowered for 2011.

Another potential compromise could relate to the thorny issue of policing the cap. The teams were unhappy about the concept of intrusive external auditors, but it now emerges that expenditures may be self-policed, with forensic accountants Deloitte to supervise.

It is believed that the compromise scenario was in fact close to being agreed in Monaco, but that Ferrari and Toyota staunchly refused to embrace the concept of budget capping in any form.