Autoblog

Remember the good old days when a prominent chief executive would have disappeared into obscurity after having been exposed by the newspapers? Well those good old days are gone, and Max Mosley is happy for it.

It's been a long and hard road for Max Mosley, but the embattled FIA president seems well suited for the ordeal. Mosley was caught on film partaking in what was described as a Nazi-themed S&M orgy with several prostitutes. He then survived a vote of no confidence in his leadership in the motorsport governing body, and launched a lawsuit against the News of the World, the British tabloid that broke the story. The judge returned the verdict from that lawsuit today, awarding Mosley £60,000 in exemplary damages, plus an additional estimated £1 million in expenses.

Mosley's case hinged on the right to privacy, and upon receiving the judgment (so to speak), the prototypical auto-erotic figure noted that he hoped the ruling would serve as a deterrent for other publications from pursuing "this type of invasive and salacious journalism". The moneys awarded by the court won't go into Mosley's pocket, as they're earmarked towards the road safety and environmental work undertaken by the FIA Foundation.

[Source: Autosport, Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty]

According to the latest reports, FIA president Max Mosley received ample warning that there were those out to expose and discredit him, but Mosley did nothing to alter his bizarre sexual activities in light of the development. The news stems from a Times interview with industrial espionage expert Dean Attew, who claims he had been approached by parties seeking Mosley's embarrassment and removal from office. Attew, who co-founded Titon International with former special forces commander Major-General John Holmes – a business intelligence consultancy that made the news two years ago when former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned by radioactive Polonium 210 – said that he communicated the information to his former colleague, Bernie Ecclestone, who in turn informed Mosley personally. However, Mosley apparently did not take the warnings seriously and was still caught red-handed and -cheeked two months later.

[Source: The Times of London, Photo by Clive Mason/Getty ]

Max Mosley dodged the definitive bullet earlier today in Paris where the FIA president walked away with a win after a secret ballot vote of confidence took place. Of the 169 votes, 103 expressed confidence in the embattled president, who is dealing with the fallout from a sex tape released by the News of the World that showed Mosely being beaten by five prostitutes. 55 ballots were cast against the motion, while 11 were invalid, according to the FIA. Mosley made it clear that he would not pursue reelection after his term ends later this year, something that is sure to make a number of interest groups, not to mention his old friend Bernie Eccelstone, particularly happy.

[Source: AP, Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty]

Bernie Ecclestone, the billionaire brain behind the commercial side of Formula 1, has for the first time publicly called for Max Mosley's resignation. When the Mosley scandal broke, Ecclestone, who has known Mosley for 40 years, did not take a stand on Mosley's resignation. All Ecclestone would say is, "It doesn't look good, does it?"

On June 3, Mosley faces a vote of confidence among his colleagues at the FIA. Mosley said he would not resign, and as he appeared to weather the worst of it, he then turned to defending his position in a letter to constituent FIA clubs. But the letter didn't merely attempt to defend his position; it essentially claimed that Formula 1 is in a major crisis, and using the logic that you don't switch horses midstream, Max should be the one to finish righting the ship. It also asserted that the commercial rights holders -- Ecclestone and friends -- were basically trying to do away with the FIA.

That letter made Ecclestone question whether Mosley "wants a war with" him. Ecclestone put out a response letter saying that there was no crisis, he had nothing to say against the FIA, and he looked forward to the next Concorde Agreement governing F1. And now he's called for Max's resignation. Max is expected to survive tomorrow's vote, and if he does, there'll probably be at least one more person who isn't happy about it.

[Source: AFP]

June 3 is still a long way off with something like this dangling overhead. That's the date for which Max Mosley, the embattled president of the FIA, has called an exceptional general assembly of the organization's constituents to discuss his future with the governing body. In addition to four of the world's largest automobile manufacturers – all of which participate actively in Formula One – several of the 222 member organizations that make up the FIA (including AAA) have called for his resignation. However Mosley, who was videotaped performing a Nazi-themed S&M orgy with five prostitutes, plans to fight for his job. He claims that for every letter of reprimand, he received another seven letters of support.

Whichever way the vote goes, however, Mosley says he'll retire at the end of his current term, which expires in October 2009. The vote will be taken via secret ballot from each of the 222 member organizations representing 130 countries.

[Source: ESPN]

In a letter to members of various FIA constituent bodies, president Max Mosley apologized for the embarrassment caused to the organization by the tabloid report of his erstwhile private exploits. In the same letter, however, Mosley pledged to fight the allegations and remain in his position despite mounting calls for his resignation.

Mosley dismissed the claim that his now-infamous sexual activities had any Nazi connections and pointed to a "covert" operation to discredit him undertaken by persons as yet unidentified through a private investigation firm. The big question is in whose interest would it have been to embarrass Mosley in such a public manner, and the list is long as the FIA president remains a highly controversial character. Follow the link to read more of Mosley's letter to the presidents of the national motorsport clubs, members of the FIA Senate, the World Motor Sport Council and the World Council for Mobility and the Automobile.

[Source: Autosport, Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty]

Despite Bernie Ecclestone's initial support of his colleague Max Mosley, Ecclestone is now publicly urging the embattled FIA president to cancel his planned trip to Bahrain to oversee the grand prix there this coming weekend.

The humiliation which Mosley apparently pursued in a disturbing sexual escapade involving multiple prostitutes in a sado-masochistic nazi-themed orgy was outdone only by the embarrassment which resulted from the public revelation of the episode in the British tabloids. Following the news breaking, Mosley declared he would proceed as normal as if nothing had happened, but Ecclestone says his colleague should think again. Citing public opinion and predicting that the royal family in Bahrain "wouldn't like it" if he came to their country, Bernie expressed concern that the news at the event would be dominated (pardon the expression) by Mosley's scandal instead of remaining focused on the race itself. Mosley's "business as usual" approach may require some further thought, to say the least. Thanks for the tip, Schwag of Tulsa!

[Source: The Times of London, Photo by Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty ]

As we reported yesterday, the Ferrari board agreed to dismiss Jean Todt from his position as CEO. But we wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the Frenchman altogether. Todt has been known as one of the busiest people in the industry, and while everyone deserves a little downtime, at 62 Todt isn't expected to disappear so quickly.

Rumors have been circulating for years that Todt could succeed Max Mosley as president of the FIA, the international motorsport governing body that regulates Formula One, among many other racing series. Those rumors are only intensifying in the wake of Todt's resignation. Todt and Mosley are known to share a close relationship, and the current president is not expected to run for another term when his current one expires next year. The speculation breeds as well on the fact that even after stepping down from the top spot at Ferrari, Todt remains the Scuderia's representative on the FIA council, leaving him with a foothold in the governing body that could come in handy when it heads into elections in October 2009.

[Source: GrandPrix.com, Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty]

We love Formula 1. Have for years. We believed it was the pinnacle of motorsport, and by golly each team had the stratospheric budget to prove it. There was a time when a single top team in F1 spent enough to run 12 or 13 top dollar teams in IndyCar. Teams have been wanting the costs to come down, which is fine, because we also miss the days when privateers had a punter's chance at winning a race. Bring back the days of Jordans, Saubers, and Tyrells, we say.

But we're not so sure about the way the FIA is going about its cost cutting. Max Mosley, FIA president, has said that as of 2009, budgets will be capped. The cap isn't set, nor are the details of what is and isn't included as part of the capped amount. For instance, the team principal, driver, and marketing department, as well as the engine, might not be included in the spending limit. If the teams accept a limit, then they'll get other rewards like additional use of their wind tunnels or more computer time for CFD work.

This, along with the 5-year engine freeze (which we still don't understand), is meant to allow teams to operate with a mooted budget amount of $150 million per year. Compared to the nearly $500 million dollars that a team like Ferrari spends, or Toyota's rumored $700 million budget, it will be fascinating to see what teams come up with. It will also be neat to start hearing about the sudden astronomical rise in marketing budgets, and to get a whiff of all those cooked books, because we simply don't believe teams will spare a bit of extra coin when championship silverware is on offer. The FIA meets with teams again at the end of this month to discuss the matter further.

[Source: Motor Authority]

FIA President Max Mosley (above) announced today that last week's decision by the World Motor sport council will be appealed. It appears the Italian motorsport authorities didn't like the idea of McLaren getting off so easily. Although they found that McLaren had indeed been given Ferrari's confidential materials, the group decided that the British team hadn't benefited from that info and no penalty was assessed. A warning was issued that if their feelings on that matter changed for any reason later in the season, they would revisit their penalty options. One of the reasons for the appeal is that Ferrari wasn't there. Mosley agreed that the outcome of the hearing may have been different if the Maranello firm had attended.

And while all this was going on, one of the parties involved said he thinks there is still a leak at Ferrari. Former head designer, Nigel Stepney, says that the person inside Ferrari who used him as a courier is still with the team. In his statements he makes the Formula 1 world sound like something straight out of a James Bond movie. Well, maybe Austin Powers. Stepney says that Ferrari knows more about the situation than it is admitting. He even claims that he was set up on this issue and on another one from a while back. At one point he had been investigated when a mysterious white powder had been found in the race cars' fuel tanks. He says that he was framed, and that the real culprit put the powder in his pocket while he was taking a shower!

Damn, this is getting good!

Thanks, Jay.

[Source: PitPass]