Ferrari budget biggest in F1 - report

Ferrari is F1’s biggest spender, while Hispania boasts the smallest budget, an industry publication has found.

But the latest edition of ’Business Book GP’ said the teams association FOTA has succeeded in dramatically cutting costs with its resource restriction agreement, according to a report in the Spanish newspaper El Mundo Deportivo.

The average annual team budget has reportedly decreased from EUR 209 million in 2009 to 113m in 2011. It was 119m in 2010.

Ferrari’s (199m) is the highest budget, while HRT’s (34m) is the lowest.

And the reduction in the average figure, whilst apparently impressive, is also due to the arrival of three low-spending new teams, and the withdrawal of big-spenders like BMW and Toyota and the scaling-down of Renault’s operation.

The report also said that despite the success of the cost-cutting, the Martin Whitmarsh-led FOTA wants to further empower the resource restriction agreement.

Reportedly, not every team in F1 has reduced its spending. Business Book GP said Team Lotus is spending much more money in 2011, while Virgin, Sauber and Red Bull also have bigger budgets than a year ago.

Meanwhile, grandees Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes and Renault are all now spending less, relying on sponsors for more than 50 per cent of their budgets.