Caterham and Marussia discussed a merger
Formula 1 could have had only 10 teams this season. Indeed, a Marussia team official revealed that their team had discussed a merger with Caterham, but the talks ultimately did not succeed, leaving both entities to participate separately in the 2013 Formula 1 season.
After the withdrawal of the HRT team at the end of last year, Formula 1 almost lost another team this winter. Indeed, the head of the Marussia team revealed this week that the Russian team had held discussions with its Malaysian rival Caterham about a possible merger between the two entities.
Graeme Lowdon confided to Sky Sports Online that it did not materialize: « I can confirm that discussions did take place. I was not involved, and from what I understand, the conclusion was unacceptable for our shareholders. So nothing happened. »
The two teams are fighting for the last payment made by FOM to the constructors – only the top 10 in the constructors’ standings receive a share of Formula 1’s revenue. The 10th place has gone to Caterham for the past three years, and the Marussia team has been the subject of rumors regarding potential financial difficulties, but the team was present on the grids this year with the arrival of paying drivers – Max Chilton and Luiz Razia, who was ultimately dismissed due to a lack of payment from his sponsors. A merger between the two teams could have secured the 10th place and reduced costs.
Furthermore, according to the Times, discussions took place because the Marussia team has still not signed the Concorde Agreements, which govern, among other things, the distribution of Formula 1’s financial revenues. However, Bernie Ecclestone told the British newspaper that he was just waiting for the Russian team to sign: « I have prepared everything for them to sign. It’s not a problem. But they were not happy and almost merged with Caterham, so it made me aware of what was happening. »
According to the British daily, which quotes an unnamed source, this merger between Caterham and Marussia would have led to the closure of the Russian team, which did not seem to please the shareholders.
