David Coulthard has come to the defence of Ferrari over their attack on some of the new teams that were given entries into this year's Championship.
Ferrari last month slammed the FIA over the standard of teams that have been allowed to enter the sport.
Campos Meta and USF1 were given the green light to be on the 2010 grid, but both struggled to come up with enough money. Campos appear to have sorted out their problems, but USF1 have been forced to withdraw due to financial woes.
Coulthard believes Ferrari were pretty much spot on, saying "Formula One is not a finishing school".
"I have heard a lot in recent months about how great it is to have 'fresh blood' in the sport," he wrote in The Telegraph. "And I noted with interest the criticism levelled at Ferrari for the scathing editorial published on their website last month, when they belittled the "small teams" entering F1.
"Well, I have to admit, I have some sympathy with Ferrari's point of view.
"Formula One is not a finishing school. Either you come prepared, or prepare to fail. This is the pinnacle of world motorsport. It's no use them bleating about the fact that the goalposts moved after they joined under a £40 million budget cap. The Formula One Teams' Association never signed up to that cap.
"Fresh blood is all well and good but I would argue that the carry-on we have seen over the past few months has been a poor advertisement for F1. First it was going to be four new teams, then Bernie Ecclestone admitted he thought only two of them would make it. Then USF1 collapsed and died, along with the reputations of Ken Anderson and Peter Windsor, who cried wolf so many times.
"Finally we are left with three new outfits - Virgin Racing, Lotus and Hispania Racing - although the last of these launched only last week following a last-minute change of ownership and has never turned a wheel in testing.
"Has the world gone mad? F1 is a dangerous sport at the best of times but asking teams to just turn up at practice on a Friday before a race is plain irresponsible.
"For a team who have been up and running for years it is difficult enough to pass the stringent FIA crash tests while accumulating adequate miles to prove the integrity of parts which are not required to be tested; for instance suspension parts, which as a reminder to all keep the wheels attached to the car."
Source: Planet F1
Ferrari last month slammed the FIA over the standard of teams that have been allowed to enter the sport.
Campos Meta and USF1 were given the green light to be on the 2010 grid, but both struggled to come up with enough money. Campos appear to have sorted out their problems, but USF1 have been forced to withdraw due to financial woes.
Coulthard believes Ferrari were pretty much spot on, saying "Formula One is not a finishing school".
"I have heard a lot in recent months about how great it is to have 'fresh blood' in the sport," he wrote in The Telegraph. "And I noted with interest the criticism levelled at Ferrari for the scathing editorial published on their website last month, when they belittled the "small teams" entering F1.
"Well, I have to admit, I have some sympathy with Ferrari's point of view.
"Formula One is not a finishing school. Either you come prepared, or prepare to fail. This is the pinnacle of world motorsport. It's no use them bleating about the fact that the goalposts moved after they joined under a £40 million budget cap. The Formula One Teams' Association never signed up to that cap.
"Fresh blood is all well and good but I would argue that the carry-on we have seen over the past few months has been a poor advertisement for F1. First it was going to be four new teams, then Bernie Ecclestone admitted he thought only two of them would make it. Then USF1 collapsed and died, along with the reputations of Ken Anderson and Peter Windsor, who cried wolf so many times.
"Finally we are left with three new outfits - Virgin Racing, Lotus and Hispania Racing - although the last of these launched only last week following a last-minute change of ownership and has never turned a wheel in testing.
"Has the world gone mad? F1 is a dangerous sport at the best of times but asking teams to just turn up at practice on a Friday before a race is plain irresponsible.
"For a team who have been up and running for years it is difficult enough to pass the stringent FIA crash tests while accumulating adequate miles to prove the integrity of parts which are not required to be tested; for instance suspension parts, which as a reminder to all keep the wheels attached to the car."
Source: Planet F1
