Will Mercedes-Benz remain in F1?

Is Mercedes-Benz fully committed to Formula One? New CEO of parent company DaimlerChrysler, Eckhard Cordes, admitted that recent quality problems – including millions of road car recalls – would cost a 'three figure sum in a million euros' to fix.

Slashing F1 partner McLaren's engine program, then, might be a handy way to cover the cost. He told Car magazine: ''We are committed to F1 for 2005. Anything else is pure speculation.''

Cordes, in the interview, also admitted to being primarily a 'numbers man', motivated by the desire to make money. ''If a program does not pay off,'' he explained, ''it is not going to happen. ''But I am … also a car guy.''