(from autosport) (I guess I am in the minority about Mosley, I happen to agree with Todt. For now) Former Ferrari team principal Jean Todt has thrown his full support behind Max Mosley - claiming he is 'amazed' by the criticisms the FIA president has faced over his private life. With Mosley due to face a vote of confidence on June 3 about his position in the wake of sexual allegations made in the News of the World newspaper, Todt has spoken out in backing his long-time friend. In an interview with French newspaper Le Journal de Dimanche, Todt said he had no doubts Mosley was still the right man to head the FIA. "He is a true president," said Todt. "He knows his business very well because he is a hard-worker, thorough and reliable. He is very intelligent, and with a rare elegance. "He knows how to impose leadership when he has to, with an international authority. He has worked very hard for safety. "When you see what motor racing was like 30 years ago, especially at the tracks, what he has accomplished is remarkable. The number of lives saved under his guidance is absolutely phenomenal. He has taken some courageous decisions, sometimes against everyone, like the HANS device. "Everyone was against that, but he was right. His work for road safety has brought a lot of progress. I'm therefore amazed to see that people are lingering on things which bear no relation to his position." Todt has said that the controversy caused by the News of the World story had not changed his dealings with Mosley, who has not attended any official functions since the story broke. "I have very good relationship with him," said Todt. "I regularly have conversations with him on the telephone, and I do not see why that would not be the case any more." When asked whether he was in favour of Mosley continuing as president of the FIA, Todt said: "That is not the question. 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. But that said, we have to respect the rules of the FIA when they meet on June 3."
If Mad Max wants to play Nazi and the POW with 6 hookers that is his life. Everyone is a little crazy, it is all defined by $$.
I think that Todt took the most reasonable approach. The guy should be judged when it comes to his job by the quality of work that he does, not what he does in his personal life. Now I am far from saying that he is a great guy, a solid role model, or even a good person, but I think that he is a solid president of the FIA. According to Todt, that is really all that matters.
He's bad for business now, escpecially when you take into account that the extremely conservative Middle East is channeling increasing amounts money towards F1. We all know what happens when you start costing more money than you're worth.
Ofcourse Jean does not want Max to go ... quite a few Ferrari championships have been aided by the fact that Max is Jean's puppet, and thus Ferrari have the FIA under control. This is why Max has to go ... and Jean too (man I so hope that Jean does not take over from Max!). Pete
Even if that isn't true Todt's support certainly gives credibility to what a lot of people have suspected for a long time. He should have kept silent on the matter. Somewhat surprising from someone known to be an astute politician. Jack
Would it matter to you if those were 6 year old boys instead of hookers? Mosley represents an international sporting organization, he is a public figure and, as such, ought to comport himself with a little more dignity. Do you think that major sponsors are going to care how he does with auto safety programs if all they deal with is their reputational risk of being associated with a Nazi Sado-masochist? Do you think BMW and Mercedes enjoy having their high profiel involvement with the sport now being associated with a whip wielding repugnant Nazi sympathizer? Do you think their shareholders are happy with this? Mosley needs to step down and to do so immediately for the good of the sport. His clinging to power by any means necessary exposes him for the corrupt, power-hungry, fascist swine that he is. As for Todt, the guy never did anything without an ulterior motive in his entire life. Ther eis more to his statemtn than merely standing by his buddy.
+1 to the above post. It is a mockery to Formula One, its sponsors, drivers, and fans that MM is still wields any power. His ties to the FIA should have been severed immediately once the story broke, instead he has persisted on keeping his job and embarrassed himself and the sport.
Ok Pete, what if Mosley had been filmed secretly removing the body from a 250 GTE, and replacing it with a fibreglass 250 GTO body?
What if all the Ho's were dressed as farm animals. A chicken, a pig, a horse, a cow, and a goat. And Max was old McDonald and he beat the the farm animals. During a break the animals conspired, and tied up old MaxDonald and beat him til his butt bled. Then they had tea. Would he seem any less credible or capable of running one of the largest sporting organizations in the world? Would Todt still endorse him?
Right on the mark! Todt is possibly just hedging his bets. He is no longer with Ferrari F1, so whatever he says can stick with him. If Max is ousted, then Todt is probably on the short list of replacements. Being the black sheep amongst a white herd may do Todt some good (in his eyes). Who knows what influence max may have on his replacement. IMO it's comtemptible for Todt to come out with this statement, he should be ashamed.
Part of the problem is that some people are incapable of being embarrassed by anything, and others are willing to overlook any kind of behavior..."move on", don't you know? Max seems to have a sense of entitlement that knows no bounds. He's become a Monty Python character. Jack
No, he was a Polish jew... All this story of Max and his hookers is something like when Al Capone was sent to jail for not paying taxes: he has done many worse things, but it´s a good excuse to get rid of him.
Actually, read between the lines of what Todt said - the last sentence is quite telling. The rest is saying there's a difference between "quit" and "resign"
Very good analogy. That's how I feel. I don't like the way he has been trapped. I don't buy this nazi angle, but I'll be happy to see him go. Should this thread be merged with the 'Mosley Busted Big Time' thread?
This is what I can't understand. How can anyone not get this? HITLER WAS AT HIS PARENTS' WEDDING HIS FATHER WAS THE HEAD OF THE BRITISH UNION OF FASCISTS MAX HIMSELF WAS REPEATEDLY ARRESTED FOR VIOLENCE IN FASCIST RACE RIOTS With a history like that, you can't just "innocently" play German sadist prison orgy and then act all surprised when people add one and one and make the connection. Surely anyone can see this falls under the heading of so bloody obvious it shouldn't even need explaining?
