BMW agrees to sell F1 team to ex-owner Sauber -- if it races in 2010

FRANKFURT -- German car maker BMW has agreed to sell its Formula One team to previous owner Peter Sauber, provided the team gets a place on the grid next season.

BMW announced in July that it would pull out of Formula One at the end of the season, citing the global economic downturn. The company said Friday that a previous agreement to sell the team to Qadbak Investments has been annulled.

"I'm the sole investor right now," Sauber told reporters at the team's base in Hinwil, Switzerland.

The 66-year-old owner said he planned to lead the team for just one season then find a successor.

Sauber said he was "very confident" that the FIA governing body would find a place on the grid for the team, which would use Ferrari engines.

The number of team employees will be cut from 388 to about 250, BMW said.

"That is not an enjoyable solution, but the best one available," Mario Theissen, BMW motor sports director, said.

BMW acquired a majority stake in Sauber in 2005.

"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," BMW's development chief, Klaus Draeger, said.

BMW finished sixth in the constructors' championship last season. Its drivers were Nick Heidfeld of Germany and Robert Kubica of Poland.

Kubica has gone to Renault, while Heidfeld is without a team.