Afraid you're right on that one, too.

It's sad.

 

One of two things should have happened long ago to avoid this conflict: a) the FIA could've decided not to make the rule change without FOTA's approval, or b) the FIA could've said "too bad, so sad" and made the $40M budget mandatory. Either situation would've nipped the conflict in the bud.

 

On the other hand, I'm starting to warm up to the idea of new teams on the grid but I'd love to see all the entries compete, and not just a select few. More cars on the track = more action and more exciting races for fans. I see that as being a good thing because it will keep F1 in the spotlight. In order for this to work though, F1 cannot afford to lose all of the halo teams such as Ferrari (which is locked in under the new rules already) and McLaren, BMW, Toyota, etc. Heck, even Brawn GP would be worth hanging on to at all costs because of their results this season alone which are sure to bring in fans and higher ratings by the truck load.