Inevitable Max Mosley post #11

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I wanted to ignore the inevitable Max Mosley stuff over the Spanish Grand Prix weekend and concentrate on the racing (at least, what little there was that passed for racing).

Pressure continues to grow on the FIA president to quit with sporting bodies shunning him and the teams considering making an official statement criticising him, and most importantly, Bernie Ecclestone turning against him.

The Israel episode

While attending the inaugural Jordan on Friday Mosley received an official invite to Israel by the country’s Minister of Science, Culture and Sport, Galeb Majadle. This could have been a significant step in the rehabilitation of the president in the public eye, not least because of the claimed Nazi overtones in the notorious video.

But within a few hours of the news becoming public the Israelis issued a public statement withdrawing the invitation:

The Minister, who was not at all aware of the scandal currently surrounding Mosley’s name, would like to make it now clear that his invitation was not intended to be personal to Mosley himself but rather to the representative of the FIA as a global organization.

In any event, once the scandal was brought to the Minister’s attention, he has requested to withdraw immediately any official invitation to Mosley until the matter is reviewed more thoroughly once back in Israel.

The phase “withdraw immediately” was highlighted in the original release. Mosley stuck to his explanation:

I fully understand the Minister’s position and look forward to resuming contact with him when the News of the World’s deliberate and calculated lies have been comprehensively refuted.

But any argument that the scandal is not interfering with his ability to do his job can surely not stand up in the face of this.

The teams’ discussion

The leaders of the teams met with Bernie Ecclestone on Saturday at the Spanish Grand Prix to discuss a response to the crisis in the FIA leadership.

According to Autosport the majority of them were concerned about the consequences for F1 of the Mosley scandal, but could not agree on what statement to make about it.

Although the owners of the BMW, Mercedes, Toyota and Honda teams have made their feelings clear on the matter the teams themselves have not said anything.

According to The Times (whose reportage on the matter we should of course be wary of), “even Ecclestone has realised that the harm being done by Mosley to the image of Formula One, and the effect that it is having on sponsors, meant that something had to be done.”

Disagreement at Ferrari?

Fearrari’s former team principal Jean Todt, who has been widely tipped to succeed Mosley, unsurprisingly voiced support for him:

If you ask me if I’m happy with the actions of the president of the FIA since he’s been in office, I think he does a very good job. Therefore I hope he will have the opportunity to carry on his work for several more years.

President Luca di Montezemolo was more cautious:

I don’t like talking about other people’s personal issues. I prefer not to comment either in my name or Ferrari’s, since there are already too many censors and judges at large.

And according to Nigel Roebuck the new Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali would like to see Mosley go.

Compare and contrast

Another sex scandal has broken in the News of the World since then and the person at the centre of it could not have handled it more differently than Mosley.

Lord Laidlaw apologised and made a £1m donation to a relevant charity. Craig explains the rest in this excellent post.

The lighter side

It must be hard being a monthly print magazine in the days of 24/7 internet coverage. The latest issue of F1 Racing came out quite a while after the scandal had broken so editor Hans Seeberg decided to restrict coverage of it to just his editorial:

We think you might be a bit border of orgies too, so we’ve decided to give it all a miss and concentrate on what really matters.

A noble sentiment and I certainly empathise with their distaste for the whole affair. But would these principles have reigned if they’d had a new scoop on the story? I doubt it.

Nelson Piquet Snr, meanwhile, made light of it all:

I am very upset with him. Very upset, because he didn’t invite anyone to his party!

Is there no-one in Formula 1 who has ever had a sex party?

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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57 comments on “Inevitable Max Mosley post #11”

  1. In Maurice Hamilton’s podcast (not the five live one, the one he does with Ian Phillips of Force India, I believe it is call "The Formula One Show") he and Ian go into detail what went on during the team principles meeting. Interesting stuff.  (I would provide a link but the Guardian’ website is s@#. Your best bet is to find it on iTunes.)

  2. Thanks Dan – anything particularly interesting they had to say?

  3. Here’s the podcast link.  Someone was nice enough to find it and post it in the comments of Maurice’s latest column.

    http://feeds.feedburner.com/MauriceHamiltonsFormulaOneShow

  4. Priceless that Piquet quote.

  5. The one thing I found interesting is that according to the podcast is that the teams were complaining about the upcoming KERS system and it turned into a debate about Max or something like that. I need to listen to it again.

    Thanks Journeyer for the link.

  6. Heikki Kovalainen is living proof that Max Mosley and the FIA’s safety regulations and stringent testing programs – conceived, managed and enforced by Mosley, who we all hate because he runs the FIA his way – is doing an outstanding job. Max’s sexual peccadilloes pale into insignificance against this. I’m sure Heikki, when he gets around to thinking about it, will be very pleased that Max knows how to run the FIA and what’s good for motor racing, as we all should be.

  7. Green Flag, I don’t think Mosley alone can take the credit for this one.  First, it’s great that he did it, yes, but now that it IS there, surely someone else can just continue what he’s started?  Time to move on and get fresh ideas.

    Second, someone else needs to be given as much credit for Kovalainen’s safety:

    "Marca has been speaking to Aman Barfull – head of the Royal Automobile Club of Catalonia – who was full of praise for one Paco Mora. Paquillo, as he is otherwise known, is responsible for track maintenance at the Circuit de Catalunya. Following concerns about the corner where Heikki Kovalainen suffered a spectacular exit in this year’s Spanish Grand Prix, Paquillo ensured that three rows of loose tyres were upgraded to a five-deep stack, strapped together, ahead of this year’s race."

    Thanks to F1Break for the snippet.

  8. That’s a great piece of information you’ve found there Journeyer.

  9. I just found it from F1Break’s site.  Thank him too.  :)

  10. And it’s not just Max that was responsible for the safety aspect Green Flag there are various other events that lead to the increase in safety. The drivers had already expressed concerns in 1994 (before Imola) and the FIA were well aware of the dangers of going too fast as shown by the WRC Group B which got abolsihed back in the 80s very quickly.

    In fact if anything F1 was the last to change and I would blame Max over the deaths in 1994 as the opening races and pre-season had already shown the danger those cars were. If anything Max realised what the FIA had ignored and then introduced safety once tradegy had already struck. So yes well done for Max to eventually bring safety, but do remember that it was eventual and not instantaneous.

  11. If will be better if there was that asfhalt they use in someplaces between the kerb and guardrail  . The car lost aerodinamic adesion and hence mechanical adesion.

  12. Of course Mosley didn’t invent all the car and track safety rules and standards himself but as head of the FIA it was his call to implement and enforce them and to ensure their continuous improvement.  F1 is now the safest high speed racing series, without a fatality, or even serious injury – bar Schumacher’s broken leg – in 14 years, despite some horrific crashes. And now the KERS regulations, which Max has championed, will make F1 even more technologically superior, faster because of the additional power, but with a great deal of real world relevance. Mosley has contributed much to motor sport – the FIA is more than F1 – and the controversy of the recent scandal should not be allowed to overshadow his accomplishments and foresight.

  13. "And now the KERS regulations, which Max has championed, will make F1 even more technologically superior, faster because of the additional power, but with a great deal of real world relevance."

    Even that is being challenged by the manufacturers, who are saying that they could do a lot better than KERS (in terms of advancement and efficiency).

    "Mosley has contributed much to motor sport – the FIA is more than F1 – and the controversy of the recent scandal should not be allowed to overshadow his accomplishments and foresight."

    I think it should be the other way round.  True, he has achieved a lot, but it should not take away from the fact that what he did is unacceptable.  True, he has done a lot, but it does not make up for what he did in that apartment in any way.  Again, I appreciate what he’s done for the sport, and he’s left a great foundation for safety.  But it does not mean he’s irreplaceable.  Someone with fresh ideas can continue building up the foundation he would leave behind.

  14. Journeyer – The KERS rules for 2009 are just a toe in the water, to get the ball rolling, and as Mosley has said, will probably increase from 60kW to 200 kW over the next 5 years or so.  Since current non-F1 KERS – your basic Prius and vehicles of that ilk – are very inefficient, power-to-weight wise particularly –  that a manufacturer can say they could do better is just not true.  The only major improvement that could be made to the F1 KERS is to use all wheels to generate power under braking, but that would mean a lot more weight and a complete redesign of the chassis. And if you’re going to generate power at the front you might as well use the power at the front, so you’d have all-wheel-drive, and F1 might not be ready for that yet. 

  15. I think what they meant was that there were systems other than KERS that could achieve the same energy-saving goals more efficiently.  As least that’s what the opinion in the paddock is.  I guess it’s just that they like the energy-saving bit, but they hate the fact that they’re restricted to KERS and they can’t experiment on their own.

  16. ALL HAIL JOURNEYER!

    Journeyer Mein Fuehrer!

    seriously though, Kers is far too complex a system, untried too.
    Why not champion Diesel power?, Hybrid’s?, the sort of mechanical power that manufacturers know about?.

    I don’t understand the thinking behind that sort of cost cutting

    "to cut the cost of F1 we will add a whole new module with lots of moving parts that F1 teams know nothing about and make them spend money to implement it so they can have an extra movable part on their cars to go wrong during racing…… THEREBY PROMOTING OVERTAKING"

  17. I’d appreciate it if someone could post a link explaining KERS and the new rules coming into force in 2009.

    This site is fantastic and I look forward to becoming a regular contributor.

  18. Hi Noel, glad you like the site! There’s two articles on KERS here that may help you:

    KERS technology revealed
    Problems with KERS

    Here’s a piece on the changes for next year:

    Good ideas on how to improve racing in F1

    And I’ve got another one in the pipeline. Also if you’re interested in contributing an article have a look here.

  19. Noel, I actually know quite a bit about kinetic energy regeneration  and the proposed F1 KERS; in fact, I am heavily involved in a company innovating and developing KERS technology for various automotive applications, including F1. I have asked Keith if I might write an article explaining the various KERS technologies and opportunities and he thought it’d be a good idea, so watch this space.

    Sush – KERS is hybrid technology.  The FIA allows electric, hydraulic, flywheel or any other mechanism to recapture energy normally lost as heat during friction braking and store it for later use, in F1’s case for shorts bursts of acceleration when needed.  Flywheels have got a lot of publicity lately but they are by no means the only way to achieve an effective and efficient KERS.  My personal opinion is that flywheel technology will not be the answer, but we’ll get to that later…

    Journeyer – As I’ve just said, they are many ways to achieve a KERS and the FIA have put no restrictions whatsoever on any technology, so the teams can have no gripe as to limits regarding experimenting. The limits imposed are to do with the amount of power generated and the outputs into and out of the power storage medium, and these power restrictions will be raised in time and as the technologies mature.

  20. Thank for the links. I’ll definitely be back!

  21. Regarding Max and his "contributions" to safety: Hitler constructed the Autobahns and Mussolini made the trains run on time. Anyone want to give those two despots a pass for whatever "good" they did? An extreme comparison certainly, but of a similar path. Whatever legacy Max thought he was leaving "behind" is certainly tainted by his "personal" perversions, isn’t it.

    He needs to got the way of the Dodo!

  22. GeorgeK, any comparison of Mosley with Hitler and Mussolini is totally bizarre and way off base. Whatever Max did in that brothel, it was between consenting adults and nobody died.  Had Hitler’s or Mussolini’s only crime been having kinky sex with a few hookers no one would have cared. 

  23. Green Flag, why don’t they use the power transfered from the Flywheel already built into the gearbox?
    you know, the bit in front of the clutch.

    hold on they banned that. THE FIA.

  24. Green Flag, while it may be ture what happened is between consenting adults, andmany have said just that, it’s far from being private now. That horse left the barn long ago and ain’t going back. That line of argument is stale, over and past it’s prime.

  25. Sush – An engine flywheel is, obviously, connected to the engine shaft and rotates at engine speed, which is a) too slow (maximum 19,000 rpm according to F1 rules), and b) slows down with the engine. The F1 flywheels employed to store kinetic energy, such as being developed by Flybrid Systems and the new Williams Hybrid Power Ltd., spin at between 60,000 and 100,000 rpm.

  26. Green Flag, you work in Marketing don’t you?

  27. Sush – The development and marketing of innovative engineering solutions, actually.

  28. Since this has turned into a bit of a debate about S&Max’s saftey record, I thought that I’d add in that the real poster boy for safety in F1 is Sir Jackie.

    Not Mad Max.

    And I would further argue that ANYONE who was FIA President for the last fourteen years or so would have introduced the same safety initiatives Mad Max did – and possibly even more into the bargain. They’d have been out on their ear if they didn’t.

    So really, S&Max only did what he had to. Hardly a ringing endorsement.

  29. Pink is as right as it gets. Jackie was the first to have the stones to get vocal about safety, when everyone was aware of the danger, but none had the courage to speak up, whereas Max followed an obvious need and demand.

  30. Max Mosley was being charitable when called the whiny git a certified half-wit; on his best day Stewart might make a third-wit. Wasn’t Sir Jackie the little coward who retired from racing when his teammate Cevert was killed at the Glen? Thought so.  Motor racing, especially F1, is dangerous. If it weren’t my granny could be champion. That’s why only those with big balls need apply. Just hearing Stewart’s name makes me want to vomit.

  31. Murcielago – if it wasn’t for the fact that I am on Keith’s blog & therefore need to be polite I’d tell you what I really thought.

    As it is, perhaps you should learn a bit of history before you make inane and stupid comments like the one you just did. And maybe, just maybe, you would not be so flippant if you had attended 57 – yes that’s right, 57 – funerals of friends and colleagues killed in motor races over 14 years.

    I dunno about you, but I had a co-worker killed in a car accident 7 years ago. A great guy, 25 years old and had his whole life to look forward to. We were not especially close, but it still pains me to this day that he is no longer with us. So multiply that by a hundredfold and you may have some inkling as to the motivation that drove Sir Jackie to improve safety.

    Life is dangerous, yes. But why should someone be expected to gamble with their life every weekend? Would you take that risk? Easy to talk from the anonymity of a computer screen. Not so easy to get out there and do it yourself, is it.

    And Sir Jackie did – for fourteen years. So a little more respect, hmmm Murcielago?

  32. Green Flag, my comparing Max to Hitler and Mussolini was admittedly extreme (or did you not read that part?) and done for effect. If the pervert Mosley can call Sir Jackie a certifiable half-wit in the guise of his public office we can certainly take similar liberties in our efforts to rid ourselves of Max.

    Murcielago, pink Peril gave you the dignified version of my response to your stupid ass-essment of Stewart. Hopefully there’ll be someone to mourn your demise if your driving is as erratic as your thinking.

  33. Murci me, talk about a half-wit. Stewart was not only a brilliant driver, one of the smoothest ever, but he had the balls to match his brains. If I’m not mistaken, he held the most race wins (27) until Alain Prost came along, not to mention 3 world championships.Half wit indeed.

    Would you call Lauda a coward for retiring from the Japanese GP in the puring rain because he didn’t have eyelids that worked properly after being burned?

    I’m thinking your granny needs to give your inner child a spanking……..

  34. Pink Peril – in answering Murcielago you sort of made my point – Stewart saw 57 drivers buried in 14 years, but in the past 14 years not a single F1 driver has died. That’s an amazing improvement, and let’s pray it continues. But it’s mainly due to the FIA’s safety focus, and like it or not, mostly on Mosley’s watch. Sure, many others played their parts in this achievement, but the driving force was, and is, Mosley. I find it unbelievable that because someone suddenly screws up his previous accomplishments are immediately null and void. Imagine, if you will, that Jackie Stewart or Ron Dennis are discovered to have done something as scandalous as Max’s contretemps – anything’s possible – would you turn on them and belittle their records? I doubt it.

  35. Gee, I had not realized that I’d stumbled into the Jackie Stewart kiss-ass fan club. No one’s doubting his driving ability, in his time he was the best. But leaving the sport the way he did lacked class, and after he retired he should have kept his mouth tightly closed because his thinking ability in no way matched his driving skills. Hence Max’s rather apt comment.

  36. If Ron Dennis was proven incontrovertibly (on film) doing the same as Max, he too should go. In fact, if Max can prove that it was Ron who had Max followed (http://www.f1complete.com/content/view/8518/900/) and paid for the filming, he still should go along with Max.

  37. Murcie, you don’t seem to have a grasp of the definition of class. Interestingly, Max was born into "high society", and is clearly a degenerate, and Jackie started off as a mechanic, which is understood to be the foundation of Max’s hatred for Ron. It’s a class thing, you see.

  38. GeorgeK, I seriously doubt, and would be shocked to find out, that Dennis was behind the surreptitious filming of Mosley’s shenanigans. It’s just not his style. He seems to have integrity, a simple definition of which is "walk your talk." Max, on the other hand talks about the good of the sport and a higher moral ground, yet acts in his own personal and professional interests only.

    More likely, Rupert Murdoch, who is being sued by Max, decided to use one of his tabloids to expose a lifestyle that he, and probably many others already knew about. Max repeatedly, and increasingly (the diatribe against Stewart is just a single example) takes gutter shots at respected individuals who dare to speak out against him. Ever wonder why Schumi never gets any stick? Live by the sword…..

  39. Murcielago, I think the reason why so many peple have reacted against your comment about Stewart is because it’s a cheap shot and you don’t seem to know the facts either.

    Stewart had decided to retire at the end of 1973 anyway, and the horrible crash that killed Cevert (and make no mistake of the gruesomeness and horror of these deaths you are being so flippant about) simply convinced him there was no merit in taking one last roll of the dice. (If anyone wants to learn more about Stewart they should check out his excellent autobiography, “Winning is not Enough”).

    I don’t think that racing in 99 Grands Prix in the most dangerous period the sport has ever seen, winning 27 of them and three championships, and while doing so leasing a campaign that by today must have saved hundreds of lives, can be described as cowardly.

    Taking a cheap shot at someone who did that from the comforting anonymity of the internet, however, most certainly is cowardly.

    I have had the pleasure of meeting Stewart in the past and he is a decent, intelligent man most undeserving of such an attack – by you or Max Mosley.

  40. I’m going to put a quote from Wikipedia: "As a result of these deaths and other serious accidents in the mid-1990s, Mosley brought in wide ranging changes to Formula One designed to make it a safer sport"

    And now to make my point. Max walked into the FIA in 1993 and immediately made rule changes for the upcoming 1994 season. Already the writing was on wall that something would turn ugle with the high number of crashes that took place in both pre-season testing and the races before Imola. Max only pulled his finger out of his arse once there was a casualty which unfortunately happened to be both Ratzenburger and Senna. Bear in mind that the last death in F1 was in 1982.

    So Max over reacted to his own cock-up and effectively spun the whole situation to make it look like he was championing driver safety when in reality he created the opportunity of those deaths in the first place.

  41. Rabi, Mosley became president in 1991: Max Mosley biography.

  42. -The withdrawal of the invitation of the Israeli ministry is a serious source of laughter…who cares what a country thinks which has less motor sport activities than Nepal?The minister tried helplessly to show that he did the withdrawal first,before Max will do it!Neglible discussion point!
    -Keith:Why did you not mention the other teams who refused  to take sides like Ferrari,Williams and Torro Rosso?
    -Why didn’t u point out the hard,deserved and merciless lecture your beloved Mr. Ron Dennis got from Torro Rosso’s Franz Tost when he talked about ethics and decency at the Spanish Grand Prix 2008?You would have learned alot from it!
    -Please be informed that the car from which Mad Max was filmed entering the house in Chelsea…was identified and you will be very surprised to what the investigations of Quest have led…even if you will not like the outcome of it!

  43. I hadn’t read any source identifying Williams and Toro Rosso as the other teams that had reservations. In fact I’d heard a rumour that Williams were one of the teams pushing hardest for the teams to take a stance against Mosley.

    If you would like to post some links to this other information you’re quoting then we can perhaps discuss it.

  44. Franz Tost was lecturing Ron Dennis on ethics? People who mess about their drivers the way Franz messed about Speed and Liuzzi (to say nothing of deliberately running customer cars when, unlike Super Aguri, they could use the facilities they’ve already got to build an F1 car of their own) are not really in a position to lecture anyone on ethics…

  45. I believe that Firepants is referring to the meeting  between most of the teams and Bernie in the motorhome in Spain where a letter asking for Max to step down was proposed.

    Williams, it can be assumed was hesitant to sign on because of the rumours of Todt taking Max’s job, and they didn’t want to force that hand, and of course Torro Rosso will vote any way Ferrari tells them. With the Red team always on Max’s Christmas card list, this one is a no-brainer. So it cannot be assumed that Williams support Max, in fact, they vehemently and litigiously opposed his customer car solution.

    That leaves, Ferrari on their own, as always. First to collect the cheque when Bernie pulled out his pen and Max said "Boo."

  46. -my sources are composed of 4 different languages,which means that my information scope is much wider and -even when alot of people do not like to admit it-much deeper and has much more substance.
    -To Alianora La Canta:
    Anyone can lecture Ron Dennis on ethics…and especially after the spy affair..If u can read or decode German (I doubt u do),read what Ron Dennis Said to Franz Tost at the Spanish GP before u start to bark…Then we can talk…Do ur home work first,then start to discuss anything!

  47. Listen Fireblade if you are going to make claims and point fingers about xyz then you should post the links so we can take a look at them ourselves. We are all able to speak different languages so don’t use that as an excuse for us to read and scan whatever sources you are claiming exist.  

  48. The number of different languages that sources are written in says nothing about their veracity.

    For example, if someone quoted the German equivalent of The Guardian I’d be more likely to take it seriously than if they cited the Dutch equivalent of the Daily Sport.

    But that’s besides the point, Fireblade, if you don’t share these sources with us.

    I see a member of the Czech Automobile Association has made an ‘ambivalent and unclear‘ implication of Dennis’s involvement, and according to Dennis he is: "writing to Mr Novak and currently considering the appropriate route via which the remarks that have been attributed to him may be withdrawn or corrected."

    Fireblade seems to be under the impression this blog has not concerned itself with the question of how the Mosley allegations came to light, in which case I suggest they read this post and especially the section titles ‘character assassination’: Why Max Mosley should resign where I stated:

    A controversial figure such as Mosley is never short of critics and enemies, and only last year clashed publicly with McLaren in the ’spygate’ scandal. Any number of people might bear a grudge against him.

    Lastly can I encourage everyone to keep the discussion on the facts of the matter and not resort to insults (as stipulated in the comment policy). I’ve deleted and edited a few comments for this reason.

  49. -Auto motor und Sport…is an example of my sources…and it has no english equivalent!Their sources are definetly much more reliable than one of those English counterparts!
    -Who is a controversial figure:Mad Max or Ron Dennis?The spy affair king ( a grave professional mistake..fact of life) or someone who did enjoy his private life and was filmed to achieve a sponsored character assassination?

  50. Character assassination? Mosley has PROVEN he has no character, which is why he should go. A man of CHARACTER would own up to his PERSONAL failings and remove himself from the limelight.

    I fully agree that Ron Dennis claiming no knowledge of Max’s plight rings hollow after his similar statements last year concerning Spygate. Do I believe he has knowledge of who dunit? No. As for Mr. Novak’s statement, it will be interesting to hear his sources that generated that comment.

  51. I didn’t say that Tost couldn’t try to lecture Dennis on ethics. It’s just that since Tost’s record on ethics is considerably worse than Dennis’, I am not exactly obliged to take Franz seriously when he does…

    As for the four-languages thing, Fireblade, well done on your linguistic dexterity. However, I read several languages of articles as well. Granted, I use Babelfish to translate those items that are neither in English nor in Spanish (and what I remember from my language studies to piece together the inevitable errors it makes), but then so can anyone else who wants to do it. Babelfish can decode many languages ranging from German to Russian – a very useful tool for anyone who wants to expand their horizons (pity it doesn’t decode computer error messages, but that’s another story…)

    So even if you do read four languages fluently, that doesn’t necessarily mean I with my lesser linguistic achievements won’t have understood the same articles you have read. The trick is to assess each individual source and story for validity, biases, misunderstandings etc. and then piece together what is likely after taking those things into account.

    In future, could you please link to items you are talking about when asked about them?

    Then we may be able to find the lecture Franz gave Ron. I’ve looked on the Auto Motor und Sport site, and the nearest I can find is Franz commenting on the car they’re wanting to debut in Turkey…

    The WMSC transcripts, for instance, make it clear that the only "evidence" that the Ferrari/McLaren mess ever involved more than four rogue employees (one from Ferrari, three from McLaren) was Max Mosley’s own repeated opinions. A prosecuting lawyer’s opinion does not constitute evidence – in any language. It’s all in writing in the PDF files provided by the FIA, and Max himself confirmed it in an interview he gave to the Paddock, which the FIA itself decided was worth a link, despite being pro-Mosley…

    Those that are claiming McLaren’s guilty verdict is based on hard evidence of widespread wrongdoing, or even wrongdoing outside the circle of Coughlan, Alonso and de la Rosa, are relying on sources that didn’t analyse the primary paperwork properly (or using the summaries the FIA provided that do not accurately reflect what the transcripts themselves reveal).

    As for "character assassination", if Max hadn’t made so many mistakes before the scandal, nobody would have taken advantage of it. If Max had issued a swift confirmation of which bits were true and false (five days after the allegations appeared is not quick), apologised for unintended offence and kept a low profile for a while, even the past professional errors would have not been enough to remove him. As it is, he merely gave his critics an opportunity to oust and disregard him. Sad but true.

  52. Last word from Joe Saward. Lordy, I wish he would name names: http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_news_item.php?fes_art_id=34667

  53. Sorry, Chris Balfe.

  54. According to Terry Lovell’s "Bernie’s Game", the journalist in question in the Balfe article is Peter Windsor who was involved in a bid to buy Motor Racing Developments, who ran the Brabham team, when the outfit was going under in the early ’90s.

  55. I’ve had to do some more editing on this comment thread – can I remind everyone of the terms of the comment policy again.

    Please note if you’ve had a comment deleted you’ve probably also had an email explaining why.

  56. The Czech official who linked Ron Dennis to the Mosley sex scandal has apologised to McLaren.

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