Good Luck BAR Honda

1030hrs, 6 May 2005, Barcelona, Spain: In the wake of the decision of the FIA’s International Court of Appeal yesterday and having considered the extraordinarily complex legal framework, a summary of the legal position is as follows.

B.A.R Honda has looked at all practical ways of immediately challenging the decision. The central issue is one of jurisdiction. Jurisdiction in Europe is governed by European-wide rules, which say that a defendant party has a right to be sued in the territory in which it is based. Upon receiving the best legal advice in all relevant jurisdictions, the conclusion is that nothing can be done to enable the team to race this weekend.

B.A.R Honda has considered whether to pursue further action which might enable it to compete at Monaco. On balance, the team has decided that to challenge the sport’s governing body would cause a level of disruption and damage to the sport which would not serve the best interests of everyone involved. B.A.R will be discussing the ramifications of the Court of Appeal verdict with the other teams and manufacturers involved in the sport.

The FIA International Court of Appeal in its own judgement was unable to prove that the team acted in bad faith. B.A.R Honda therefore remains unclear as to the basis for such a severe penalty. The team vigorously contests any insinuation that could potentially tarnish its reputation and good record, something that is of fundamental importance to the whole organisation and its partners.

In an effort to provide the greatest possible visibility to the outside world of its case, B.A.R Honda today will publish its entire submission to the FIA International Court of Appeal on its website for anyone interested to examine it. This dossier will be available in English for viewing and download via BARHondaF1.com this afternoon