Radical new engine regulations and restrictions on testing during the course of the racing season will be up for discussion in a meeting of Formula One team representatives in Geneva tomorrow.
According to UK newspaper, The Guardian, the intention is to agree a cohesive package of cost-cutting measures ahead of next week's meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport council, at which Max Mosley, the president of the sport's governing body, is threatening to impose changes — including standard specification engines — unless the teams come up with better ideas. Ferrari spokesman Luca Colajanni, told the paper: "The goal of the meeting is to define a common proposal for the future at short and medium term. A lot has been defined for 2009, more is to come for 2010 and 2011 to reduce costs and improve the show. These are the leading principles."
One of the most controversial, suggestions is to replace the current 2.4-litre V8 engines with 1.8-litre turbocharged power units, designed to consume around 30 per cent less fuel, from 2011. This would almost certainly involve abandoning refuelling during races, which would have a far-reaching impact on the design and weight distribution of the cars.
Proposals to cut testing from 30,000km to 15,000km per season will also be debated, as will Bernie Ecclestone's proposal that the world championship should be decided by an Olympic medal system rather than the points table used at present.
