Zoom Mosley moves ahead with F2 plans

The company controlled by former F1 driver and commentator Jonathan Palmer has won the tender to supply and promote the FIA's proposed new Formula Two category.

MotorSport Vision has enlisted the stalwart F1 team Williams to assist with chassis design, while Audi will provide a 1.8 litre turbo engine, the FIA said in a statement on Monday. The cars will be built with the same safety standards as Formula One.

FIA President Max Mosley said in June he envisaged a typical F2 budget at about 200,000 euros per season.

The 2009 season, to be run over eight rounds counting two races each, is set to debut next May. The FIA expects the per-driver annual cost to be less than 250,000 euros.

"The objective is to make top-level international single-seater racing available to drivers who at present have difficulty in raising enough money to demonstrate their talent," Mosley wrote in a statement announcing the deal.

"Formula One and other major championships will benefit by being able to draw on a far larger pool of drivers, while competitors from countries which do not yet have an established motor racing structure will find it easier to make progress," he added.

"We hope to reveal talent that might otherwise never have emerged and we look forward to seeing drivers coming into Formula One with super licences gained in Formula Two," Mosley concluded.

Having operated the Formula Palmer Audi series for the past 11 years, MSV also runs five UK motorsport venues, including Brands Hatch.

D.B. © CAPSIS International
Source: GMM