The us and them, or rather, the Ferrari and us, situation continues to simmer away, as the Italian team was the only outfit present at Friday's meeting with Max Mosley, the remaining nine teams continuing to stand together as one, and boycotting the meeting.

Consequently, Jean Todt and Ross Brawn spent several hours at the Hilton Hotel in Heathrow, in a meeting subsequently described by Max Mosley as "useful".

"We gleaned a great deal of useful information today," he told Reuters, "probably more than if we'd had the other teams here.

"It's much easier to talk to one team," he continued, "and we were fortunate enough today to be able to talk to a team who have demonstrated that they have got a good understanding of Formula One, what it takes to be successful and also what it costs."

The latest outbreak of hostility follows Ferrari's shock decision to sign up to a new Concorde Agreement, which leaves the Grand Prix World Championship minus one of its strongest players, though Honda and Toyota now look likely to step into the breech.

The teams are also angry at Ferrari's refusal to agree to the 30-day test limit, a row that has been simmering away since the teams made the proposal in Brazil.

The FIA is in the process of putting together a rules package for 2008 - when the GPWC is scheduled to begin - and Friday's meeting was meant to see the teams make their proposals, they showed their feelings by staying away.

"The FIA make the rules for 2008, that I think is very clear," said Mosley. "The sooner we make them, the better it is for everybody. The earlier people know, the less money it costs to make any change.

"All we need do, and all we are doing, is consult the teams. We don't have to get their agreement. The meeting today was to consult them. Well, if they don't want to be consulted, that's fine."

He revealed that a 'revised' Concorde Agreement from 2008 to 2012 would be drawn up.

Asked about the threat posed by the GPWC, Mosley was quick to make his feelings clear: "It's impossible to take it seriously," he said.

"At the moment it's very easy for people to huff and puff and take positions. In the end they will all be there in 2008. It will all sort itself out."