World champions Ferrari have warned Formula One's governing body not to try to include them as an automatic entry on the list of competitors for next season without first meeting their conditions.
The Italian glamour team and seven others making up the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) have submitted only conditional entries, with the list of those accepted due to be published on Friday.
Only Williams and Force India have submitted unconditional entries.
At least 10 would-be newcomers are also seeking entry to the championship in a standoff between the governing body and existing teams that threatens to tear the sport in two.
The FOTA teams met in London on Wednesday to discuss the situation and Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali made clear afterwards that the governing International Automobile Federation (FIA) should not try to force matters.
"Ferrari's position has not changed," he said on the Ferrari website (www.ferrari.com).
"Back on 29 May, we put in a conditional entry with the other teams that make up FOTA. Along with this entry, we put forward to the FIA a package of proposals which included among other elements a significant reduction in costs.
"As always, we will do all we can to find a solution that is acceptable to all parties. If this is not possible, then the FIA will not be able to include Ferrari in the list of teams entered for the 2010 FIA Formula One world championship."
The FIA has argued that Ferrari already have an unconditional entry due to a previous agreement committing them to the championship until 2012 in return for a veto of the technical regulations and financial rewards.
The standoff has revived talk of Ferrari and the manufacturers setting up a rival series if the FIA goes ahead with plans to introduce an optional 40-million-pound ($65.56-million) budget cap next season.
Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone said he was prepared for legal action if that happened.
"If they do try to set up their own series, and I don't think they will be able to, there are big problems ahead for them," he told the Daily Express newspaper.
"Apart from my contracts with teams, if somebody went to any of our contracted people, companies, television contractors, we would view it very seriously.
"That would be inducement to breach contracts and I don't do that myself, so I won't stand back and let it happen. Any action could run to hundreds of millions of pounds, who knows how much?" he added.
(Reuters via China Daily June 12, 2009)
