A mere handful of years after buying him out of his eponymous team, BMW have agreed a deal to sell their Formula One team back to previous owner Peter Sauber, assuming that the team is granted a spot on the 2010 grid.
The BMW company also announced that the long-proposed buyout by Qadbak Investment Ltd would not now go ahead, meaning that Sauber will retake control of the team he sold to BMW back in 2005.
The reasons for the Qadbak deal collapsing were not given, but current reports over the company, which also bought a majority stake in Notts County Football Club in the UK recently, suggest that the supposed Middle Eastern backing of the Swiss company may not be as secure as first thought.
"We are very happy with this solution," said Dr Klaus Draeger, who sits on the Board of Management for the BMW company. "This fulfils the most important requirement for a successful future for the team.
"Our relationship with Peter Sauber has always been excellent and marked by absolute respect. We would like to express our thanks to Peter Sauber and the whole team for the excellent cooperation during the recent four years."
Speaking about the deal, Sauber said that: "I am very relieved that we have found this solution. It means we can keep the Hinwil location and the majority of workplaces. I am convinced that the new team has a very good future in Formula One, whose current transformation with new framework conditions will benefit the private teams.
"Our staff here are highly competent and motivated, and I look forward to taking on this new challenge together with them. I would like to thank BMW for four shared years that have in the main been very successful."
The agreed buyout now remains dependant on the conclusion of the current legal wrangling over the final 2010 grid slot. The FIA is clarifying it's legal position over Toyota's shock withdrawal, and until that is sorted, will not make a decision on the final entry list.
Should Sauber be granted an entry, though, he would once again be in charge of a team running Ferrari customer engines, as he was before the BMW buyout thanks to the Petronas deal.
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