FIA President Election Process: “No Foil Hat Required”
NOTE: On occasion the Half-Vast Staff™ of Full Throttle hands the keys over to a guest poster, this is one of those times. This post was authored by PeterG a long-time reader/commenter who on occasion feels the need to vent, rant, er… I mean post something of relevance.
Enjoy, and be advised, it might be wise to shutter the drapes and lock your doors.
No tin foil hat required - PeterG.
Before writing this I have looked out the window, no black helicopters are hovering, & I’ve asked my assistant to stall any people “from the government” until I get this post out.
If you are like me and are somewhat naive in assuming that Mosley’s grasp on the FIA Presidency since 1991 was based on the simple fact that no one had dared to challenge him………….smack yourself in the head with a four by two as I have just done. THWACK!!! Ouch.
The recent move by former World Rally Champion & European Parliament member Ari Vatanen to possibly run for President has highlighted just how difficult the election process really is.
How could I have been so stupid & not noticed that this political animal Mosley, with the survival instincts of a hyena, would not safeguard his own position. Max, being many things but not unintelligent, must have realized that his tyranny would one day move from dissension to open revolt & decided to take out a little career insurance.
The year was 2005 and, if you recall, F1 was too distracted with the GPMA breakaway threat and the fallout from the PR disaster of Indy. Whilst no one was looking Max - clearly sensing where the political winds might blow in the future - changed the rules for how a Presidential challenger would lodge their candidacy. In the past all that was required was for a member to endorse a nominee, in Max’s case when deposing the Emperor Balestre it was the New Zealand (of all places) motorsport body that threw their lot in with Max, so frustrated were they with the Napoleonic tendencies of old Jean-Marie.
So why can’t a new challenger throw their hat in the ring any more? Because it requires a whole 22-strong ‘cabinet’ list to be nominated prior to the election taking place!
This cabinet system was introduced in 2005, just prior to Mosley successfully winning another term as president after standing unopposed. The original aim of the cabinet system was to ensure that wild card candidates could not put themselves forward and hope to capitalize on merely a negative vote for the current president.
In a letter sent in 2005, prior to the FIA senate approving the cabinet system, Mosley said: “In order to be successful, a candidate for the presidency would need the open support and backing of major participants in the FIA; This would mean that the presidency would tend to go to someone with a team and a programme, both of which had broad support throughout the FIA rather than the backing of any particular interest group.”
Just to further muddy the waters, and in a move that would make Stalin and Mao smile in their graves, Max further complicates the process and even requires a “list” of FIA members who support a new candidate, with their name position and signature!
As Peter suggets we all should have seen this coming. Sadly we didn't and frankly the Half-Vast Staff™ is willing to take our ass whacking like the rest of you.
“This core group of people must include a President of the Senate, a Deputy President for Sport, a Deputy President for Automobile Mobility and Tourism, five members of the Senate, seven vice-presidents of the FIA for Sport and seven vice-presidents of the FIA for Automobile Mobility and Tourism. Assembling a 22-strong team ready to be so public in its support is not an insurmountable problem, but one big difficulty is that none of the individuals on one presidential hopeful’s list can be present on another.”
The FIA document says: “A list cannot include a candidate who is already registered on another list, on pain of ineligibility of the said candidate. Should such be the case, (and after the identification by the FIA Secretariat) the list reader must provide a replacement for the ‘lost’ candidate in the conditions set out in the FIA Internal Regulations.”
Brilliant! In the best traditions of dictators and despots Max basically enshrines himself for life if it is his choosing. I am now pretty much convinced that Max will stand for re-election in an effort to derail the FIA/FOCA accord, whether he will succeed or fail is open to debate but he will not go without, first a fight, and second the ability to leaving a hot steaming turd on the desk of his replacement.
BTW, all naïve fools, like myself, who failed to see this one coming, please assemble in an orderly manner………and a sound spanking is in order.
Half-Vast Staff™ of Full Throttle adds this: A month ago Cosworth were celebrating their return to Formula 1 with three grand prix squads, US F1, Campos Meta and Manor.
As we now know, all three squads were officially accepted for next years grid.
A recent report has surfaced suggesting of possible hanky-panky in how new teams were selected.
In short an unnamed head of a rejected team has sent a letter to a senior figure at an existing Formula One team.
He was told for his “application to have any chance of success” he “would need to report Cosworth as” the teams “engine supplier for three seasons.”
“It was made very clear to me that it was considered a ‘mandatory’ condition from the powers-that-be that Cosworth was the engine supplier,” he said.
As they say, read the rest at the link provided. It all sounds, OH so, Mad Max doesn’t it?
Ya know I don’t even want, need, or have the desire to detail the newest fight that has broken out.
Read it yourself.
If you recall I questioned how Prodrive & Lola, who pretty much have a turn-key F1 capability, missed out & the “strengths” of the winning entrants. Windsor’s US effort is supposedly the real deal, while Manor Motorsport includes Nick Wirth, Max’s old partner at Simtek F1. Now there is further suggestion of a conflict of interest, Manor has a relationship with Max’s old mate & chief FIA steward Allan Donnelley.
Combine all this with the complaint from rejected entrants that they were never informed about the Cosworth preference & the whole thing stinks.
Not that any proof were needed, this is just another example of why the FIA needs a broom taken to it, the organization is completely dysfunctional, with or without the dickhead that runs it. Max should be packed of the a flat in Chelsea so that he can have his bare arse paddled for the rest of his earthly years.
Regardless of all this, the shite has well & truly hit the fan in Germany between FOTA & the FIA yesterday. The teams have walked out of an FIA meeting after they were told they could have no input on regulatory discussions, the teams have now gone back onto the attack of the governing body.
Clearly, if there is to be no breakaway, the Mosley issue will have to be resolved now & not in October. For the sake of F1 (& humanity) depose Mosley this weekend in the Fatherland.
Hey Marc! A new bumper sticker? “Axe Max!!!”
I recall that very well pete… em Nostradamus.
As did many others.
I want to see a complete walk-out in Germany, to hell with it all.
BTW, the enclosed image is actually one of myself, if you hadn’t figured that out by now.
Yes I thought I recognised you in profile…….that deserves a paddling.
Max has done well to derail FOTA’s breakaway, to be up & running they need to start preparations now & yet Max got them to lay down their arms with a peace treaty he never intended to honor.
I guess now the ball is really in Bernie’s court, he must surely side with the autos, sponsors drivers who have made it very clear they will walk off if forced to.
The profile I’m not so proud of, but that ass. Now there’s something to talk about.
Yepper, I agree, it’s been enough hours for Bernie to weigh into the fray and very surprised he hasn’t at this point.
He must be checking his bank balance and burning up the text msgs to the auto makers.