David Richards has submitted an entry for his Prodrive outfit to compete in next year's Formula One World Championship.
Team boss says "conditions are right" to enter F1
David Richards has submitted an entry for his Prodrive outfit to compete in next year's Formula One World Championship.
The team become the third prospective new entrant for 2010 after Campos Meta 1 and Team US F1 also lodged entries on the back of the FIA's plan for a budget cap.
Former BAR team boss Richards said the cap was a necessity in order for Prodrive to enter F1.
"We are very appreciative of the support we have been given in putting together our entry, not least by both the FIA and FOM (Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One Management)," he said.
"With the help of Dar Capital in raising the finance, coupled with our understanding of the latest proposals to assist new teams, we now feel the conditions are right to formally request the FIA for an entry."
Even so, there was no mention of a cap by members of the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) when they submitted a block entry on Friday, only the recognition that "significant action" should be taken towards reducing costs.
Dar Capital is a Kuwaiti finance, logistics and property company that formed the backbone of a consortium, led by Richards, that paid £600million for a majority stake in Aston Martin in 2007.
It is understood the team will operate under the Prodrive name for next season and potentially 2011, before switching to Aston Martin branding from 2012.
Prodrive had expressed an interest in entering F1 last season with cars provided by McLaren Mercedes. However, the plan came to nought when so-called 'customer cars' were banned.
Lola, who last competed in F1 in 1997, and Litespeed also lodged entries on Friday.
