Red Bull Racing and Ferrari withdraw from FOTA

Bram Hengeveld · Dec 4, 2011

Ferrari and Red Bull Racing have decided to withdraw from the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) on the back of the ongoing row over the Resource Restriction Agreement, AUTOSPORT can reveal.
Amid ongoing debate about the future of FOTA, with teams failing to agree a way forward for the RRA after a crunch meeting at the Brazilian Grand Prix, high level sources have revealed that both Ferrari and Red Bull Racing have lodged notification that they intend to leave the organisation.
It is understood that both teams wrote to FOTA earlier this week to inform them of their decision.

Source

Chris Jenkins · Dec 4, 2011

Does this mean they can spend more on R & D now?

Markus Neumann · Dec 4, 2011

At least not for 2012. As far as I know, the RRA is a legally binding agreement that is not dependent on membership in FOTA. There's also an agreement that goes until 2017, but RB is trying to pull out of it. So if the teams don't manage to make a new agreement for 2013 and onwards, chances are that they will sue RB in order to keep the RRA together :-p

David Jundt · Dec 4, 2011

Now they've jumped the ship, I doubt the others will just take it and stay.

This "gentlemen" and "we-trust-each-other" agreement was bound to fail, if there are no controls to make the teams play to the rules.