F3000 entry confirmed.

The FIA has released the list of teams allowed to enter next year's International F3000 championship.

Although none of the 15 eligible outfits has nominated its driving strength, the list will come as solace to those who found themselves teetering on the edge of expulsion from the series after finishing towards the bottom of the points table in 2000.

Most relieved of all will be DJ David 'Kid' Jensen's operation, which said that it would close its doors for good should it fail to make the cut. Bas Leinders' retirement from Spa's final round could have been the most costly of the season for the team, but withdrawals elsewhere have now saved the day.

The McLaren Junior team would have occupied one of the top slots in the entry had it decided not to take a sabbatical next season, while one of the outfits at the opposite end of the spectrum - Gabriele Rafanelli's World Racing Team - had also said it would not be competing in 2001.

As a result, Kid Jensen Racing and the Belgian Witmeur operation have both made it into the 30-car list, along with Durango Corse, which was promoted from the Italian domestic series.

The full list of entries is as follows:

Super Nova Racing
Petrobras Junior Team
Team Astromega
European Arrows
Coca-Cola Nordic Racing
Gauloises Formula
Arden Team Russia
Red Bull Junior Team
Coloni
DAMS
Fortec Motorsport
Witmeur KTR
Kid Jensen Racing
Durango Corse

Drivers can be nominated up until 15 days before the opening race which, for the first time, will be held at Interlagos in Brazil.

Team names may also be expected to change before round one, with the Gauloises Formula team yet to discover whether its backing will go the same way as that of affiliate Prost Grand Prix.