Spec Formula One?

The series is moving forward with new rules to reduce cost and make racing more directly relevant to road-car development.

Doing more with less is the challenge increasingly presented to automotive engineers, and now the wizards of Formula One are gaining an appreciation for this skill. That is because Formula One organizers are tightening rules with an eye to reducing budgets so that smaller teams are not crushed by the competition among global manufacturers.

Combined engine budgets alone for the top teams exceeded one billion Euros last year, said Fèdèration Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) president Max Mosley. Individual team budgets range between 100 and 200 million Euros, he added. “This is clearly unsustainable, particularly for manufacturers that are unsuccessful in Formula One,” Mosley said.