BMW to leave F1 at the end of 2009 - Confirmed

[Zack]

Prodrive

[phil1993]

As long as the car gets a decent livery, I don't care Back to the good ol' green and blue and yellow please

[Zack]

Prodrive livery aren't that bad .... i think this their best chance current BMW Sauber assets are enough to win WDC.

[iceman1]

Peter Sauber, according to Autosport, is confident of finding an investor to keep "Sauber" in F1

[Jaguar]

Piquet Snr eyeing Sauber takeover

http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/n ... 4958.shtml

his son got kicked from a team ... its revenge time for him

[phil1993]

Hi, yea it's Peter Sauber. So listen, you know how you sold Rover for just £10..."

[phil1993]

BMW fail to find buyer in time

Spoiler:

The BMW Sauber team has announced it was unable to sign the new Concorde Agreement after failing to reach a deal in time with a possible buyer.

BMW announced late last month that it will quit Formula 1 at the end of the current season, and the German manufacturer started looking for a buyer in order to save the team.

The car maker had until yesterday to sign the new agreement.

Team boss Mario Theissen, however, said it had been impossible to find a buyer for the team in such a short period of time, and therefore the Hinwil-based squad could not sign F1's new accord.

FOTA said on Wednesday it would support initiatives to allow the team to sign up at a later date, although it is unclear if the FIA will allow that, or whether it will give the opportunity to one of several hopeful new teams waiting for an opportunity.

Theissen said BMW will still try to find a solution for the team together with Peter Sauber.

"Since the announcement on 29 July of our strategic realignment, we have done everything in our power to reach a rapid agreement on the sale of the team based at Hinwil," said Theissen in a statement on Thursday.

"Regrettably, despite every effort, this has proved unsuccessful. The tight timeframe we faced simply did not allow us and the interested parties and investors enough time to find a solution for such a complex transaction. This means the team cannot sign the Concorde Agreement at present.

"The aim now is, over the coming weeks, to find a solution together with potential interested parties and Peter Sauber. Beyond that, we will see the 2009 season through to its conclusion with our unstinting sporting commitment."

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/77572

Sauber: BMW demands were too high

Spoiler:

Peter SauberPeter Sauber has blamed BMW's demands for the failure of his negotiations to complete a takeover of the team.

AUTOSPORT understands BMW was asking for much more money for the purchase of its Hinwil base - from which all the team's activities except powertrain development are run - than Sauber was willing to pay.

Sauber, who brought the team into Formula 1 in 1993 and retained a 20 percent stake after it was bought by BMW in 2005, said that had a deal been completed, he would have been able to sign the Concorde Agreement.

This would have guaranteed the team a share of the sport's sport revenue for the next three years and helped ensure its long-term future.

"Following the announcement by BMW that it will be pulling out of Formula 1 at the end of the 2009 season, I tried to launch a takeover and rescue of the team," said Sauber.

"However, the negotiations with BMW have failed because the demands were simply far too high for me. Consequently, I have been unable to sign the Concorde Agreement, which guarantees payments worth millions and would have secured the future of the team."

Sauber is still determined to do everything he can to ensure that the Hinwil-based team continues in Formula 1, but described the collapse of the deal as the "bitterest" in his motorsport career.

"I am incredibly disappointed and disconsolate," said Sauber. "For me this is the bitterest day in my 40-year career in motor sport. It is also a devastating setback for the team.

"Other solutions must now be sought. The responsibility for that lies in the hands of BMW. Needless to say, I am willing to help, as before."

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/77574