Horner: F1 cannot rely on manufacturer outfits

Thursday 5th November 2009

Red Bull boss Christian Horner believes Toyota's demise epitomises the fact Formula One should not be reliant on the manufacturers.

In the space of 11 months Formula One has now lost Honda, BMW and Toyota, with suggestions that Renault held a board meeting to discuss their future in the sport.

Tyre manufacturers Bridgestone also confirmed on Monday they are to pull out at the end of next year, suggesting all is far from rosy in the F1 garden.

There is still the possibility of 13 teams lining up on the grid for 2010, leaving the independents holding sway, as was the case for many years prior to a decade of manufacturer dominance.

"It was with great sadness we learned of Toyota's position," Horner told BBC Sport.

"You have to feel for the employees. I think there's not far off a thousand that are going to be facing a difficult future unless they embark on other programmes.

"For Formula One to lose a name, and the biggest car manufacturer in the world in Toyota, is disappointing.

"But it shows Formula One should not be reliant on manufacturers.

"Independent teams are the heart and soul of Formula One. They don't tend to come and go as manufacturers do.

"We've still a very healthy grid. Toyota's demise gives a chance to the Sauber team - now privately owned - to take their place.

"So we are set for a really competitive year in 2010. We'll have 13 teams - hopefully. But unfortunately without Toyota, which is a shame and a loss."

Your Comments

F1jones

"When I started watching F1 there were four engine suppliers and three were exclusive: Ferrari, Renault and Matra. The next year Matra was gone. Didn't matter to me, the cars were still fast and they sounded great. I won't care next year that the same count will exist again. I've been saying since the the manufacturers got into F1 that they'd pull out suddenly, and it WON'T be because of money. I've seen this before in IMSA and CART; they leave because the manufacturer boards don't like losing and the sad fact of sport is that someone's got to lose. Take a look at the progression of manufacturer withdrawal. Jaguar was a management mess with no results, and they sold. Honda was the worst manufacturer in 2008, and they withdrew in embarrassment. Then BMW suddenly is horrible after canning development during a good 2008 and they lose confidence and leave. That leaves Toyota at the bottom after 8 years of futility, while Renault now has everything to lose by being beaten by Red Bull with their own engines. These manufacturer boards have no desire to be in F1 for the fun of it; it only pays off if they're winning. This is consistent with every other manufacturer involvement in motorsport. Even Porsche won't stick around sportscar racing when they don't have a competetive car. In the meantime they can complain about the marketplace driving this, while it's always been competetive and manufacturers have been shutting down or have been absorbed for several decades now, it's nothing new. Someday some of these manufacturers will forget their lesson of being beaten by teams who know what they're doing rather than just spending money and building ivory towers. Rest assured, teams like Campos and Manor won't quit untill they run out of sponsorship, not just to save face. "

wicked315

"Many people are saying that Ferrari should be given special status because its a racing team and not a manufacturer.

Ferrari became a manufacturer as soon as Luca Di Montezemolo became the President of Ferrari in Nov,1991. So those who say that Ferrari should be given special previlage should rethink.

Mclaren are also becoming like a manufacturer, only engine division is missing. If they bought the BMW F1 engine division, they will also become a full manufacturer."

davidb

"I have posted many stories on this subject in the past. Most get promptly removed. Anyhow, you have only to review F1 history and you will see that Bernie, and later Max when he became FIA boss, have always tried to keep the mfr influence relegated to that of engine supplier - like the Cosworth days of old. Aside from Ferrari, which is a racing company first and a car company second, all the car companies have always come and gone as it pleased their bean counters and boards, with no regard for the history or continuity of a healthy F1. And Bernie and Max made that perfectly clear over and over. But everyone claimed to know better than them, accusing them of greed - when quite the opposite was true. Only the rich old boys cared about F1 and it was safe in their good hands. The others simply care about themselves. It has always been the independents who make F1 what it is. With 20% of the funds they regularly beat the manufacturer teams, even with older versions of the same engines! In eagerness for quick cashouts, those who cared more about their personal short term vision than the long term future of F1 let the mfrs lead them into that nonsense FOTA deal. They gave as the reason for FOTA the greed of Bernie and Max when all they wanted was to wrest control - control that undeserved - as history proves once again. Yeah, what a foolish idea that FOTA thing was. They have only themselves to blame. And to point a finger at FIA and FOM now is ridiculous."