Richards resigns from Benetton

(20-Oct-98) - David Richards has resigned as chief executive officer of the
Benetton Formula 1 team.

"In spite of the excellent relationship and respect that has developed
between myself and the Benetton family, we could not agree on the future
direction of the business," said Richards, who took over from Flavio
Briatore just over a year ago.

"Nonetheless, it's been a very exciting year and I have great belief
in the potential of Benetton Formula."

29-year-old Rocco Benetton, the youngest son of Luciano Benetton, will take
over at the helm of the team.

The former Investment banker, who has been working at the teams
headquarters for over a year, thanked Richards for his input to the team
over the last year: "I want to thank David not only for his work, but
also his ideas for the future of the team.

He went on to highlight the team's objectives: "The objective of the
Benetton Formula 1 team over the next few years will be to build upon the
victories achieved in the first ten years. We are a young team and we want
to be competitive."

"To do this we have decided to strengthen our presence through greater
investments in human and technical resources, in order to set our sights on
new goals with energy and enthusiasm."

"I have a very positive view of the team and know that with a very
strong technical leadership of Pat Symonds, Joan Villadeprat and Nick
Wirth, we can look forward to a highly competitive season in 1999."

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