Following the disapearance of Prost Grand Prix and Tom Walkinshaw's Arrows team, and facing the prospect of one or two independent teams folding up in the months to come, the FIA imposed drastic changes to Formula One rules, some effective imediately. The goal is to cut escalading costs to ensure all remaining 10 teams survive as well as to spice up on track action which has become too predictable over the past couple of seasons.

After months of discussion and resistance by most of the largest teams which prevented any drastic action, FIA President Max Mosley announced the new rules at a meeting of team owners at Heathrow airport today. While no immediate rule changes can be decided without unanimous consent of all teams, the FIA has decided to strictly enforce existing rules.

and no, long time F1 Fans, it's too early to be an april fool's joke... this is for real !

As of the start of theason, the following is banned:
- Telemetry, pits to car AND car to pits
- Radio communications between drivers and pits.
- Use of a spare car
- Changes to cars between qualifying and racing. Cars will be held in Parc Ferme and possibly released only for the warm up session and limited supervised safety checks

The FIA also wants to eliminate the current restriction on teams sharing components other than engine and gearboxes whether these components are built by outside companies or a team itself.

Later in the year, latest by 2004, the following will be banned:
- Launch Control,
- Traction Control,
- full automatic transmissions

Effective 2004 :
- Standard brakes to be supplied to all the teams
- Standard rear wing
- Minimum life cycles for key components incl engines, transmissions, etc..
- Making it mandatory for engine suppliers to supply more than one team

In 2005, engines will need to last 2 race week ends and this will be extended to 6... yes that's SIX race week ends... The FIA also mentioned a ban on some exotic material (like aluminium-beryllium banned two years ago) and has raised the possibility of a single source engine supply in the future if needed to further curb costs.

Because the start of the season is less than 3 months away, the FIA did admit it will consider derogations on the electronic aid ban if teams prove that eliminating electornic drivers aid will intially increase costs.

No reaction so far from the big teams, but both Eddie Jordan and Minardi's Paul Stoddard have expressed their satisfaction... both are struggling to find sponsors for the 2003 season.

According to the FIA, these changes will have immediate effect on costs by reducing travel and shipping expenses (fewer cars, parts and equipment to ship and less personnel). It will also drastically reduce team operating costs throughout the year by reducing staff and the amount of parts needed to keep the cars competitive.

At the end of the 2002 season, a first set of changes had been approved including new point system and new qualifying procedure allowing only 2 hot laps over 2 days instead of the current 60 minutes/12 laps rules in hope of making racing more exciting.