Ferrari's Jean Todt has claimed that the world champion team deserves to be paid more than its rivals to compete in Formula 1. "Ferrari has always been special and tied to Formula 1 as Formula 1 is tied to Ferrari," said Todt. "It is like in the movies when the stars are paid more – Ferrari is the star and wants to be paid like a star."
There has been in dispute between Ferrari and F1's other teams, after it seemingly went behind their backs by agreeing to a new Concorde Agreement with the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone. And according to The Times newspaper, Ferrari is thought to have received as much as £55m to stay in F1 instead of joining the breakaway GPWC series. It is also thought to have secured a guarantee that it will earn £50m per year regardless of its finishing position in the championship – significantly more than its rivals are expected to receive.
"The others might be frustrated," added Todt, "but they would demand the same if they were in our position. It was easier for them in the past because we had no success, but now Ferrari is special and successful and that is harder. Without underestimating what the other teams did, I feel that Ferrari did achieve more than the others."
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