Since the USF1 fiasco and the consequent cal for expressions of interest by FIA in order to fulfill the vacant grid bid few weeks later, huge amounts of paper and ink have been consumed about who could have been the final bidder and whats its success could have been. But after a series of postponements, FIA has finally revealed after a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris that none of the applicants to become Formula One's 13th team were successful putting an end on all 13th team speculations. "Following the press release of March 19, 2010 calling for expressions of interest to participate in the 2011 and 2012 seasons of the FIA Formula One World Championship, a number of interested parties expressed their interest," read an FIA statement. "It was considered that none of the candidates met the requirements to be granted an entry into the championship. Consequently, the allocation of the 13th team will not be granted."
Due to the economic crisis, F1's reputation has suffered a lot after the termination of Honda, Toyota and BMW's F1 projects and the USF1 fiasco had made things more strict for the latest 13th team candidates. Still neither of the two most robust candidates that were believed to be Epsilon Euskadi and Jacques Villeneuve's Durango-backed F1 project has persuaded FIA that have the financial strength to support an F1 team. Moreover, it is certain that a late bidding announcement could have made impossible the preparation of a 2011 participation when the current F1 teams have already started since summer to design their 2011-specificated chassis.
