Qadbak deal collapses; former team boss buys back his team

BMW has sold Formula One team back to Peter Sauber, on condition that the team receives an entry for 2010, after announcing that its original sale to Qadbak Investment Ltd. will not go ahead.

The German car maker announced earlier this year it was pulling out of F1, and said it had agreed a deal with Swiss company Qadbak for it to run the team in the future.

BMW said on Friday, however, that the Qadbak deal would not be completed.

Instead, the car maker has sold the operation back to Peter Sauber, who founded his F1 team in 1993 and ran it until BMW bought it four years ago.

Sauber said: "I am very relieved that we have found this solution. It means we can keep the Hinwil location and the majority of workplaces.

"I am convinced that the new team has a very good future in Formula One, whose current transformation with new framework conditions will benefit the private teams."

A further agreement with Sauber proposes personnel cuts from the current level of 388 to around 250 employees.

The future of the team in Formula One remains unclear, however, as the FIA has yet to confirm its grid slot for 2010.

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