09/11/2004
NEWS STORY
Britain and France both look set to host rounds of the 2005 Formula One World Championship, following today's meeting of the team bosses and Bernie Ecclestone.
The nine teams - Ferrari wasn't present - have agreed a financial package that should see the events take place, though Bernie Ecclestone still has to resolve his issues with Silverstone owners, the British Racing Drivers' Club.
Under the terms of the mysterious Concorde Agreement, teams are only committed to a maximum of seventeen races a year, the 2005 calendar currently consists of nineteen events.
In 2004, the championship consisted of eighteen races, which led to Ecclestone having to 'find' as much as $3m for the big teams, ranging down to $1m for Minardi. It's not known how much the teams will be demanding for the two extra races, but since the events are in France and Britain, therefor on the doorsteps of many of the teams it's not thought that Ecclestone will have to dig too deep.