Will Max be saying this next year?
Discussion
As you know, in June of last year, prior to their affirmative vote of confidence in me, I stated to the FIA membership that I would not run for re-election as their President in 2009. At that time, it was my sincere intention to step away from my formal position in 2009, although of course I wished to continue my services to motor sport and to public driving safety in some other substantial way.
In the intervening period since my undertaking, a number of important events have taken place. The first, of course, was the vote itself, in whichMohammad Bin Sulaymen(edit) the membership overwhelmingly expressed their confidence in me. As you can imagine, that was most gratifying.
The second event was my resounding legal victory in the High Court, which fully supported my lifelong campaign for justice. Although at times this has seemed a quixotic campaign, my faith in the great British legal system was ultimately redeemed. The damage that outside parties brought upon my family can never be undone, but at least my good name was restored in a court of law.
The third event has been the technical trajectory of this year's competition in Formula One, global motor sport's premier competition. Although we at the FIA have great hopes for the future of KERS, even the teams themselves will privately admit that they have struggled with many technical and safety problems during the season. Most of these problems are still unresolved as I speak. With the eyes of the world upon Formula One when it comes to its commitment to green concerns, it is essential that the sport gets this right.
The fourth event has been the preliminary indication that the Donington racing circuit may fail in its brave attempt to stage the British Grand Prix next year. Although the FIA is not allowed directly to influence the commercial side of motor sport, its unique position as the neutral arbiter of the sport, and the historic relationships that it enjoys with both the commercial rights holder and British race organisers, can enable it to endeavour to save the British Grand Prix, whether that be at Donington or at another circuit. As you can imagine, saving the British Grand Prix has a special meaning for me, a British citizen, long-time resident and full-time Anglophile.
With these four events, and several others which I am not at liberty to make public at this time, in their minds, a delegation of senior FIA members approached me about a month ago and asked me if, for the sake of the sport and the FIA, I would consider standing for another term as FIA President. They impressed upon me the need for stability and continuity at the FIA, as well as the need for a leader who fully understands the immensely complex technical and political challenges that the FIA faces.
Although flattered by their request, I immediately declined it. Having made a commitment not to stand, I believed that it would not be right for me to break it.
A smaller group of the most senior FIA officials returned some days later, and implored me to change my mind. Again, I declined their request.
After further thought, however, I came to realise that, by refusing their request, I had been thinking only of myself, and this I could not allow myself to do. It has never been, and could not now be, acceptable for me to put personal interest ahead of my duty to the FIA, to motor sport, and to the motoring public.
In that light, I am both humbled and delighted to say that I have decided to accede to the members' wishes. I shall stand for re-election as FIA President and, if re-elected, I shall continue to do my utmost to serve the FIA and its good causes.
I will not be taking questions.
Thank you.
In the intervening period since my undertaking, a number of important events have taken place. The first, of course, was the vote itself, in which
The second event was my resounding legal victory in the High Court, which fully supported my lifelong campaign for justice. Although at times this has seemed a quixotic campaign, my faith in the great British legal system was ultimately redeemed. The damage that outside parties brought upon my family can never be undone, but at least my good name was restored in a court of law.
The third event has been the technical trajectory of this year's competition in Formula One, global motor sport's premier competition. Although we at the FIA have great hopes for the future of KERS, even the teams themselves will privately admit that they have struggled with many technical and safety problems during the season. Most of these problems are still unresolved as I speak. With the eyes of the world upon Formula One when it comes to its commitment to green concerns, it is essential that the sport gets this right.
The fourth event has been the preliminary indication that the Donington racing circuit may fail in its brave attempt to stage the British Grand Prix next year. Although the FIA is not allowed directly to influence the commercial side of motor sport, its unique position as the neutral arbiter of the sport, and the historic relationships that it enjoys with both the commercial rights holder and British race organisers, can enable it to endeavour to save the British Grand Prix, whether that be at Donington or at another circuit. As you can imagine, saving the British Grand Prix has a special meaning for me, a British citizen, long-time resident and full-time Anglophile.
With these four events, and several others which I am not at liberty to make public at this time, in their minds, a delegation of senior FIA members approached me about a month ago and asked me if, for the sake of the sport and the FIA, I would consider standing for another term as FIA President. They impressed upon me the need for stability and continuity at the FIA, as well as the need for a leader who fully understands the immensely complex technical and political challenges that the FIA faces.
Although flattered by their request, I immediately declined it. Having made a commitment not to stand, I believed that it would not be right for me to break it.
A smaller group of the most senior FIA officials returned some days later, and implored me to change my mind. Again, I declined their request.
After further thought, however, I came to realise that, by refusing their request, I had been thinking only of myself, and this I could not allow myself to do. It has never been, and could not now be, acceptable for me to put personal interest ahead of my duty to the FIA, to motor sport, and to the motoring public.
In that light, I am both humbled and delighted to say that I have decided to accede to the members' wishes. I shall stand for re-election as FIA President and, if re-elected, I shall continue to do my utmost to serve the FIA and its good causes.
I will not be taking questions.
Thank you.
k what you lot want. I'm staying.It'd probably be more along these lines:
--
Today I come before you to confess some errors of judgement and repair what damages have been done by them. I know that many people think there were great injustices perpetrated last season - and yes, I echo your sentiments here, for there were indeed - and I know that you are concerned about the future of F1. There was also another matter that had been resolved, though I regret not as successfully as I hoped, and for reasons I do not understand there are those who persist in bringing it to my attention, as if to defame me with what has been justly resolved. I know there is much unrest and fear regarding our great enterprise. Believe me when I say that I understand all your fears and let me allay them.
Concerning those great injustices, I will admit I made some mistakes. These were undoubtedly, unfortunately aspects of the most important issue of the F1 season and I hope that we may today put them behind us. I apologise to those whom in the pursuit of justice, I caused undue injury to with my investigations; in particular to Ron Dennis and to Mclaren, for ultimately, they were innocent of my suspicions.
Indeed as it has turned out, they had nothing to do with what horrid, slanderous things that NOTW illegally and immorally published and that so disrupted our season. I feel compelled to point out, however, that in those other matters I spoke of previously, Mclaren were proven guilty of offences which brought the image of f1 into disrepute, caused untold damage to its reputation abroad and therefore my suspicions were only logical, if finally unfounded.
But with this apology, we put to rest these trifles and move forward once more, for having overcome the most problematic crisis which we were to face, through courtly justice and the wisdom of the FIA members in lending me their continued support, the future of the FIA and f1 is bright.
At this moment I think it only fitting to announce that I have decided, after much rumination and at the request of many FIA members, to continue in my post as FIA president for another full term. . .
--
Today I come before you to confess some errors of judgement and repair what damages have been done by them. I know that many people think there were great injustices perpetrated last season - and yes, I echo your sentiments here, for there were indeed - and I know that you are concerned about the future of F1. There was also another matter that had been resolved, though I regret not as successfully as I hoped, and for reasons I do not understand there are those who persist in bringing it to my attention, as if to defame me with what has been justly resolved. I know there is much unrest and fear regarding our great enterprise. Believe me when I say that I understand all your fears and let me allay them.
Concerning those great injustices, I will admit I made some mistakes. These were undoubtedly, unfortunately aspects of the most important issue of the F1 season and I hope that we may today put them behind us. I apologise to those whom in the pursuit of justice, I caused undue injury to with my investigations; in particular to Ron Dennis and to Mclaren, for ultimately, they were innocent of my suspicions.
Indeed as it has turned out, they had nothing to do with what horrid, slanderous things that NOTW illegally and immorally published and that so disrupted our season. I feel compelled to point out, however, that in those other matters I spoke of previously, Mclaren were proven guilty of offences which brought the image of f1 into disrepute, caused untold damage to its reputation abroad and therefore my suspicions were only logical, if finally unfounded.
But with this apology, we put to rest these trifles and move forward once more, for having overcome the most problematic crisis which we were to face, through courtly justice and the wisdom of the FIA members in lending me their continued support, the future of the FIA and f1 is bright.
At this moment I think it only fitting to announce that I have decided, after much rumination and at the request of many FIA members, to continue in my post as FIA president for another full term. . .
Hopefully he'll be saying something along the lines of: I have decided to leave my position as Il Presidenti in order to fight the accusations about the Euston 40 which has hit the newspapers.
And once he's gone down for that there'll the HS 125.
He will, no doubt, suggest that he'll be back but with less believability than Arnie.
And once he's gone down for that there'll the HS 125.
He will, no doubt, suggest that he'll be back but with less believability than Arnie.
Although I think that Max standing down, or being removed, can only be of benefit to F1, I am a little concerned. Mainly because I don't see anyone that can step up and replace him.
I had assumed that Todt would be 'the man', but that seems to have gone very quiet lately. Do we imagine that, as JT is no longer the special person he once was at Ferrari, he would be suitable for such a position? Or, is this a tactical Ferrari master stroke to avoid any accusations of potential FIA favouritism in the future by appearing to give him the cold shoulder? Then, once installed, he begins to wear red again?
I fear that Flemke is far too close to the truth for comfort, although I fervently hope this is not the case. I certainly wouldn't put any money on hearing something very close to this in future months, although with Max's confidence the way it currently is I'm sure he'll be having another pop at Sir Jackie and Ron Dennis too.
NBZ
I had assumed that Todt would be 'the man', but that seems to have gone very quiet lately. Do we imagine that, as JT is no longer the special person he once was at Ferrari, he would be suitable for such a position? Or, is this a tactical Ferrari master stroke to avoid any accusations of potential FIA favouritism in the future by appearing to give him the cold shoulder? Then, once installed, he begins to wear red again?
I fear that Flemke is far too close to the truth for comfort, although I fervently hope this is not the case. I certainly wouldn't put any money on hearing something very close to this in future months, although with Max's confidence the way it currently is I'm sure he'll be having another pop at Sir Jackie and Ron Dennis too.
NBZ
Edited by NeilBeforeZod on Tuesday 29th July 22:02
NeilBeforeZod said:
Although I think that Max standing down, or being removed, can only be of benefit to F1, I am a little concerned. Mainly because I don't see anyone that can step up and replace him.
I had assumed that Todt would be 'the man', but that seems to have gone very quiet lately. Do we imagine that, as JT is no longer the special person he once was at Ferrari, he would be suitable for such a position? Or, is this a tactical Ferrari master stroke to avoid any accusations of potential FIA favouritism in the future by appearing to give him the cold shoulder? Then, once installed, he begins to wear red again?
NBZ
I think you will find that JT is no longer as popular in Maranello as he once was.I had assumed that Todt would be 'the man', but that seems to have gone very quiet lately. Do we imagine that, as JT is no longer the special person he once was at Ferrari, he would be suitable for such a position? Or, is this a tactical Ferrari master stroke to avoid any accusations of potential FIA favouritism in the future by appearing to give him the cold shoulder? Then, once installed, he begins to wear red again?
NBZ
I'd maintain that there are thousands of people who would do a better job as FIA President than the incumbent has done, although that bar is a low one. Part of the reason for the fallacy that the job is really challenging is that Mosley has portrayed it as being so difficult that almost no one except himself is capable of handling it.
What the job requires are reasonable intelligence, incorruptibility, intellectual honesty, good interpersonal skills, patience, street smarts, some familiarity with and interest in motoring, and a strong stomach.
I swear you cannot make this mayhem up, I might contact a friend in Hollywood and see if he would be interested in making a comedy about a person in F1 who is a compete self indulgent moron. It's got to a point where I am just laughing about how all this madness came about, and how Max still has the balls to work as the president for the FIA.
Edited by waynepixel on Tuesday 29th July 23:08
waynepixel said:
I swear you cannot make this mayhem up, I might contact a friend in Hollywood and see if he would be interested in making a comedy about a person in F1 who is a compete self indulgent moron. It's got to a point where I am just laughing about how all this madness came about, and how Max still has the bulls to work as the president of the FIA.
I'm not having a go at you, Wayne, but I don't think it is a case of balls, or strength of character but more that he's completely unaware of the public view of him and, more importantly, the public's view of his conduct.I was at a rugby tournament on Sunday and a chap who has minimal knowledge of F1 had a couple of digs about Mosley, spanking and prostitutes. That's his view of my sport. Vodaphone have just pulled out of sponsoring a club that we will be playing this season and he was (as I am) relieved and then said that they must have made the decision befor Mosley's court case otherwise they might have pulled out of sposoring Mclaren instead.
He might be right.
Derek Smith said:
waynepixel said:
I swear you cannot make this mayhem up, I might contact a friend in Hollywood and see if he would be interested in making a comedy about a person in F1 who is a compete self indulgent moron. It's got to a point where I am just laughing about how all this madness came about, and how Max still has the bulls to work as the president of the FIA.
I'm not having a go at you, Wayne, but I don't think it is a case of balls, or strength of character but more that he's completely unaware of the public view of him and, more importantly, the public's view of his conduct.I was at a rugby tournament on Sunday and a chap who has minimal knowledge of F1 had a couple of digs about Mosley, spanking and prostitutes. That's his view of my sport. Vodaphone have just pulled out of sponsoring a club that we will be playing this season and he was (as I am) relieved and then said that they must have made the decision befor Mosley's court case otherwise they might have pulled out of sposoring Mclaren instead.
He might be right.
Perhaps both. It is fairly obvious that he has no respect for normal standards of decency. In that respect he is a classic sociopath.
At the same time, he also seems to be deeply ignorant of many aspects of the real world. This is the guy who said, after the FIA "Fans' Poll" three or four years ago, that he had learned from the poll results that the fans wanted more overtaking. What a surprise that must have been.
flemke said:
I think you will find that JT is no longer as popular in Maranello as he once was.
I'd maintain that there are thousands of people who would do a better job as FIA President than the incumbent has done, although that bar is a low one. Part of the reason for the fallacy that the job is really challenging is that Mosley has portrayed it as being so difficult that almost no one except himself is capable of handling it.
What the job requires are reasonable intelligence, incorruptibility, intellectual honesty, good interpersonal skills, patience, street smarts, some familiarity with and interest in motoring, and a strong stomach.
So that would be pretty much none of the attributes that Max himself has? We hear regularly that he's not a stupid guy, but in my experience it sems to be the really clever people who have absolutely no common sense. I've worked wih doctors who could barely tie their shoe-laces. Very clever guys, but no idea of anything outside of their specific area of expertise. A bit like some of F1, I guess. I'd maintain that there are thousands of people who would do a better job as FIA President than the incumbent has done, although that bar is a low one. Part of the reason for the fallacy that the job is really challenging is that Mosley has portrayed it as being so difficult that almost no one except himself is capable of handling it.
What the job requires are reasonable intelligence, incorruptibility, intellectual honesty, good interpersonal skills, patience, street smarts, some familiarity with and interest in motoring, and a strong stomach.
I'd rather go for someone from completely outside the sport, maybe someone like <plucks a name out of the air> Alan Sugar, or Richard Branson. Although I don't want to see them turn F1 into 'F1 by Amstrad', or 'Virgin F1', I think their sense of commerciality and ability to please their customers would put them in a much better position than 'Spanky' Mosley. Lets have somone steering the ship that actually listens to what their customers want, instead of a self serving, arrogant little man intent on setting his own direction just to show that he's the boss.
I'm sure there are many who would be able to step into the breach but I feel that Max has made the role into something of a poisoned chalice for the moment. Would anyone with any sense take this on, knowing they may be seen as 'the next sado-masochist', instead of a globally powerful and well respected figurehead?
NeilBeforeZod said:
flemke said:
I think you will find that JT is no longer as popular in Maranello as he once was.
I'd maintain that there are thousands of people who would do a better job as FIA President than the incumbent has done, although that bar is a low one. Part of the reason for the fallacy that the job is really challenging is that Mosley has portrayed it as being so difficult that almost no one except himself is capable of handling it.
What the job requires are reasonable intelligence, incorruptibility, intellectual honesty, good interpersonal skills, patience, street smarts, some familiarity with and interest in motoring, and a strong stomach.
So that would be pretty much none of the attributes that Max himself has? We hear regularly that he's not a stupid guy, but in my experience it sems to be the really clever people who have absolutely no common sense. I've worked wih doctors who could barely tie their shoe-laces. Very clever guys, but no idea of anything outside of their specific area of expertise. A bit like some of F1, I guess. I'd maintain that there are thousands of people who would do a better job as FIA President than the incumbent has done, although that bar is a low one. Part of the reason for the fallacy that the job is really challenging is that Mosley has portrayed it as being so difficult that almost no one except himself is capable of handling it.
What the job requires are reasonable intelligence, incorruptibility, intellectual honesty, good interpersonal skills, patience, street smarts, some familiarity with and interest in motoring, and a strong stomach.
I'd rather go for someone from completely outside the sport, maybe someone like <plucks a name out of the air> Alan Sugar, or Richard Branson. Although I don't want to see them turn F1 into 'F1 by Amstrad', or 'Virgin F1', I think their sense of commerciality and ability to please their customers would put them in a much better position than 'Spanky' Mosley. Lets have somone steering the ship that actually listens to what their customers want, instead of a self serving, arrogant little man intent on setting his own direction just to show that he's the boss.
I'm sure there are many who would be able to step into the breach but I feel that Max has made the role into something of a poisoned chalice for the moment. Would anyone with any sense take this on, knowing they may be seen as 'the next sado-masochist', instead of a globally powerful and well respected figurehead?
Mosley is so off the wall that no one would be associated with him by virtue of having taken on his former job (that is, his former job as FIA President, not his former job of having his arse flogged, although, come to think of it, the latter probably won't become his "former" job anyhow).
There is a strong case to be made for separating overall responsibilty for the racing and public road driving elements, which have little to do with each other in any regulatory or safety sense.
If anything, combining the separate roles into a single job creates the potential for abuses of power: witness the outrageous allegation that Mosley held to ransom BMW's Ncap rating until that carmaker knuckled under to Mosley's demands for a change to the F1 engine formula. Simply mind-boggling.
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