Stoddart is understood to have been guaranteed around £5m (€7.2m) by the other teams which will ensure the future of his cash-strapped outfit for the rest of the season.

“Silverstone is 100% guaranteed safe from protest,” said Stoddart, speaking before his driver Justin Wilson gave British sports minister Richard Caborn a ride in a Formula One two-seater car at Hyde Park in London.

“What we have effectively done is adopted the rules for the rest of the year and they will stay that way for 2004 as well. Clearly with a championship as close as this one is, we don’t want any controversy, we want each race to take its own course and see the year out.”

Stoddart had threatened at last weekend’s race in France to run cars without driver aids at Silverstone unless there was movement on the so-called ’Fighting Fund’, aimed at helping the sport’s independent teams, and on affordable engines for next year.

The Minardi chief met with his fellow team principals at Magny-Cours last Sunday after which he said he hoped that agreement could be reached before Silverstone week.

Stoddart believed he had discovered a loophole in the regulations on drivers’ aids like traction control which meant they would be banned from the British Grand Prix, though this was disputed by other bosses.

“We’ve had some contribution and, as everything always is, it’s a compromise,” said Stoddart of the financial aid.

“We’ve effectively agreed to agree for the remainder of 2003. I think we can safely say that for the rest of the year the fighting will all be done on the track, which is where it should be.”