F1 teams await Ecclestone proposal on disputed cars

MANAMA, Apr 14 (Reuters) Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone will draw up a proposal in the next few weeks to try and resolve a dispute over the legality of Super Aguri and Toro Rosso's cars, Spyker boss Colin Kolles said today.

The 11 team principals met Ecclestone for nearly two hours in the Bahrain Grand Prix paddock but failed to reach an immediate solution.

Spyker, who have gone to arbitration over the matter, claim that both teams are in breach of the current regulations by competing with cars that they have not designed and built themselves.

Kolles has argued that the Super Aguri is essentially last year's race-winning Honda while the Toro Rosso and Red Bull cars have both been designed by Adrian Newey.

The two teams say they are acting within the rules, with Toro Rosso co-owner Gerhard Berger rejecting any compromise after Spyker protested against his cars at last weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix.

Kolles said a proposal would be drawn up before the Spanish Grand Prix on May 13.

''I think that now almost everybody realises that we are right,'' Kolles told reporters. ''Even Honda would accept the proposal that the Super Aguri car is a Honda car.

''I do not know how near we are to a solution,'' he added.

''But at least it's getting more and more obvious.

''There will be a proposal from Bernie, I think, between now and Barcelona. It will be an exact definition of a constructor and what benefits a constructor and an entrant should get.

There is a difference between an entrant and a constructor.'' ''We have no major issue that they (Super Aguri and Toro Rosso) are running their cars, but in our opinion they are not constructors so they don't deserve constructors' points and constructors' money,'' added Kolles.

''There must be some compromise. I know what it is but we have to wait.'' Ecclestone said yesterday that he was working to end the dispute but it was hard going.

''I'm still plodding away at it,'' he told reporters. ''It's very hard to get all these people to agree. It's always good for somebody today and tomorrow it's bad for them.

Reuters SSC GC1529