Mad Max resigns from F1 presidency

I sawthat this morning. I'm still waiting for the reasons.

 

Motor racing chief Max Mosley will explain his surprise decision to step down on Friday afternoon at Magny Cours, site of this weekend's French Grand Prix.

Mosley, who has battled with leading constructors over the last year to make Formula One racing more exciting and less expensive, will step down at the end of the season in October.

The 64-year-old English lawyer has been FIA president since 1991.

Source AFP

 

I bet he calls it quits because no agreements could be found on where F1 ought to go.

Max had some crazy ideas, no doubt, but the egotistical world of F1 zampanos and team managers would drive anybody crazy. Point in case: Everybody agrees that the current qualifying system sucks yet they decided to throw out the just agreed upon new system (no changes for Silverstone).

Too many chefs in the kitchen.

 

He has been able to come out and express his true views now that he's stepping down.

Here are some of the most interesting things he said:

"They (team bosses) have all become extremely rich because the board on which they play has been arranged by someone else," said Mosley. "I can say this now because I'm on my way soon."

"Bernie has created a Monopoly board for them to play on where the money is just enormous and they have made huge sums of money. But fundamentally they are not businessmen and they are not trying to make money."

"They just long to win races. I can name two of them who are businessmen, but the overall atmosphere there is I just want to win the race, so if I've got 50 million dollars sponsorship I'll spend 51 and borrow a million.'

"Some of them have been made rich despite themselves because they have been given so much money they couldn't actually manage to spend it. It is not a deliberate business strategy, shall we put it like that."

Mosley has been trying to work with the 10 Grand Prix team chiefs to reduce costs and improve the spectacle and safety of the sport but now feels he has achieved as much as he can in his role.

"I've got to the point now where I no longer find it interesting or satisfying to sit in long meeting, particularly with the Formula One teams and the World Rally Championship teams," said Mosley.

"People often agree things and then they go away after the meeting and change their minds completely and that means you've wasted a day. Sometimes one asks oneself 'Isn't it more fun to sit on the beach with an interesting book?'.

"Above all you shouldn't stay in a job that is as important as the FIA if it doesn't really fascinate you. I have achieved in the job everything I have set out to achieve and I'm grateful to the people who have helped me do that."

 

As I figured, he just got totally frustrated.

Problem is, that until 2007 the Concorde agreement is in place, which requires unanimous decisions from all team managers. The interests are too diverse to make that happen for radical changes.

Sounds to me like we're going to continue down the current path. Not good for F1.

 

OR maybe he got a better job offer with more money and less stress of F1! Either way... Max dida good job, there is always room for improvement but he delt with all that pressure fine. I did not agree with some of his decisions but others seemed to be fair.

 

Fnck off Max, you won't be missed. Done nothing to the sport since he came on board and like Bernie a bumbling fool.

The only difference between the 2 is that Max tried to fix a Bernie started disaster ... but atleast Bernie appears to like racing and qualifying when it really is proving something.

So good bye Max please go back to your corporate world and leave sport well alone.

Pete's opinion

 

Mosley's resignation is the best F1 news I've heard in ages, but I don't agree he did nothing. In fact it would have been a whole lot better if he had done nothing. The rule changes he has introduced have almost all, without exception, been to the detriment of the sport. He is just a typical modern politician who can spout convincingly for hours on why black is white and it is only when you get a chance to reflect that you realise he has been talking absolute drivel. I just hope whoever takes over can push things in the right direction.

 

Er, I meant done nothing positive for the sport ...

Pete

 

Well it is surfacing that Max had to resign due to a clash with Bernie Ecclestone himself.

Max Mosely was unenthusiatic of the new qualifying system being proposed by Bernie Ecclestone. Bernie Ecclestone wanted to change to the old style format of all cars being on the track at the same time. Max pushed the side of the small teams that would stop getting vital TV time if the new qualifying system was adopted. When the vote went against Bernie Ecclestone's new propsed qualifying format, Ecclestone was furious at Max. When push came to shove Max is outweighed by Bernie's power.

Also for the benefit of clarity.
Max Mosely is not F1 president he is / was FIA President. Two completely different things. Bernie Ecclestone's FOM company owns the rights to Formula 1 and the trademark.

 

Exactly why he has to go. Putting money before sport never helps the sport.

Look at the BS that occurred in Australian national rugby league competition a few years ago when they tried that.

Pete

 

You know I am going to save my comments untill I see who replaces Max Mosely. We may have gotten rid of Max, and are celebrating right now. But it is possible that his replacemnt is a bigger problem.

 

Good point. Remember the Balestre days?

As much as I liked Max for trying to change F1 around, his objection to changing the qualifying system was stupid. Bernie was right on that one.

 

You are exactly right! I know Max Mosely was not great, but he was not the worst ever. We could have a real nut job replace max and then there would be even bigger issues to face.

 

I'll say bring on Tony George. He'll split F1 right down the middle.