Formula One is in turmoil.

Two of the richest and most successful teams in the sport -- McLaren and BMW Williams -- are involved in a bitter legal challenge with the sport's governing body over rules changes aimed at cutting costs.

	Michael Schumacher gives thumbs-up during the unveiling of the the new Ferrari F2003 GA.

The dispute threatens to overshadow action on the track in the season-opener March 9 in Melbourne, Australia, where Michael Schumacher and Ferrari are again overwhelming favorites to dominate F1.

Ferrari and Schumacher, though, are a part of the F1 problem.

In winning 15 of 17 races last season, Ferrari's domination pushed down TV ratings worldwide. Coupled with a slump in the world economy, cash-strapped advertisers and sponsors began turning away.

Schumacher is coming off the greatest season in F1 history, winning a record 11 times en route to a record-tying fifth series title.

"I've had 12 years in F1 and I've only had one season which was like last year, so why not have a little bit more of that?'' said the German, who won the title with six races to spare.

"It would be too much to think we could do that again.''

Englishman Nigel Mansell, who won the series title in '92, expects no letup from Schumacher, who will be 34 when the season begins.

"Believe me, he really wants that sixth world championship,'' Mansell said. "He has the hunger, and when you combine that with a mega God-given talent he has, it makes you seriously hard to beat.''

F1 changes

A look at changes to be introduced in the 2003 Formula One season: Qualifying: Qualifying will be divided into two, one-hour sessions on Friday and Saturday, instead of one hour on Saturday. Drivers will get one "flying lap'' with cars running one at a time. Friday times will determine the order of Saturday's session, with the fastest car going last. The starting grid for Sunday's race will be based on Saturday's times. Team will not be allowed to refuel after Saturday qualifying for Sunday race. Practice: Three teams -- Renault, Jordan and Minardi -- have signed up to the new practice schedule. They will be allowed an extra two hours of practice on Friday, but will be allowed just 10 days of private testing during the season. The other seven teams will have one hour to test on Friday before qualifying. Driver's aids: Traction control and electronic gearboxes will be outlawed beginning with the British Grand Prix in July. Launch control, which helps drivers in starting from a dead-stop, will be banned beginning with the same race, provided all teams can equip their cars with manual clutches. Telemetry: Pit-to-car telemetry, which allows teams to change the settings on a car during a race via computer, has been eliminated. The FIA proposes car-to-pit telemetry be banned from the start of the 2004 season. Points: The top eight finishers will earn points instead of only the top six. Scoring will be 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Old system was 10, 6, 4, 3, 2, 1. Radios: Radio transmissions between the driver and team will continue but the communications must be open to the governing body, FIA, and broadcasters. Spare cars: Teams will be allowed to use a spare car if the race car is damaged beyond repair. If a car fails before the start of a race or cannot be used after a race has been stopped during the opening two laps, teams can use the spare car but the driver will start from the pit lane. Team orders: Team orders that interfere with a race result have been banned.

That could be bad news for the sport.

The Arrows and Prost teams folded last season, leaving only 10. Two of those -- Minardi and Jordan -- are reportedly struggling to survive through 2003.

In the offseason, International Automobile Federation (FIA) president Max Mosley, supported by F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone, moved quickly to install rule changes aimed at returning competition by banning high-tech drivers' aids, changing qualifying and testing rules, and revising the scoring system.

"I promise, there won't be another season like this,'' Ecclestone said last year. "Next year, it's going to be a good show again.''

Changes on the track should make things more interesting, but the battles off it could be just as compelling.

McLaren team director Ron Dennis and Williams owner Frank Williams accused Mosley of "dictatorial practices'' in pushing through the sweeping on-track changes in the wake of Ferrari's landslide.

In an open exchange with Mosley, they said the changes posed "safety risks'' and violated a contract between the teams, the FIA and Ecclestone. The two have filed for arbitration in Lausanne, Switzerland.

The case is likely to take a year to resolve. Meanwhile, FIA's changes will stay in place for this season.

In a four-page letter two weeks before the season opener, Mosley hit back at Dennis and Williams for taking FIA to court.

"You both knew perfectly well that ... there was great unease among sponsors, television networks and race promoters about Formula One,'' he wrote. "You must also have known that to announce your intention to go to arbitration would add to this unease and revive all the worries of the winter break.

"If you truly believe that the public wants to see computer-controlled cars guided from the pits by anonymous engineers, please think again.''

Dennis said many of the changes had "not been thought through. Most of them increase costs and are less safe, in our opinion.''

"Where we are going is wrong for F1,'' he added, saying the FIA was trying to "dumb down'' the sport.

Williams said the "main issue is the way the rules have been changed.''

The two are both upset at the ban on high-tech devices, which seem to give an advantage to the wealthier teams. Mosley also accuses the two of resisting revenue sharing, which would give a boost to smaller teams.

Williams and McLaren have the second-largest budgets in Formula One, reportedly $290 million, just behind Ferrari's whopping $440 million. At the bottom is Minardi with a budget of $32 million and Jordan at $56 million.

	“	When you look at the sport historically, there are periods of dominance that tend to last for a couple of years. Ferrari are experiencing that right now, but McLaren-Mercedes and the rest of the field are all working hard to close the gap ”
		— David Coulthard

Dave Richards, team director at BAR-Honda -- a middling team with a budget of about $176 million -- said the court case was "the last thing the sport needed at the moment. Everyone in F1 should be pulling together to make it a success."

The driver lineups at the top remain unchanged -- with Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello at Ferrari, Juan Pablo Montoya and Ralf Schumacher at BMW-Williams, and David Coulthard and Kimi Raikkonen at McLaren.

The new Ferrari car, which will make its debut when F1 returns to Europe for the San Marino Grand Prix in April, will be named for the late Fiat patriarch Gianni Angelli.

Four rookies will make their debut in Australia, all with tail-end teams: Englishman Justin Wilson (Minardi), Englishman Ralph Firman (Jordan), Brazilian Cristiano de Matta (Toyota) and Antonio Pizzonia (Jaguar). Gone is Eddie Irvine, who was dropped by Jaguar and unwilling to take a pay cut to join Jordan.

Coulthard declined to speculate on how changes in qualifying and the ban on electronic aids would change race results.

"When you look at the sport historically, there are periods of dominance that tend to last for a couple of years,'' he said. "Ferrari are experiencing that right now, but McLaren-Mercedes and the rest of the field are all working hard to close the gap.''

Mosley and Ecclestone can only hope so.