Mosley to consider his future if FOTA ends attacks

HAMBURG - Max Mosley may not seek another term as president of the ruling motorsport body FIA which could put an end to a Formula One row in which eight teams have threatened to form a breakaway series.

British daily The Times said Tuesday that Mosley was considering not seeking another term atop FIA, but only if the head of the teams’ association FOTA, Luca di Montezemolo, refrains from an attack on him at a meeting of FIA’s World Motor Sport Council Wednesday.

“The Times understands that Mosley is prepared to countenance not standing for re-election as president this October but only if what is seen by him as the attack on the FIA’s authority by the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) comes to an end,” The Times said.

“The impression gained from authoritative sources is that Mosley is expecting Luca Di Montezemolo, the president of FOTA, to set out his case over the crisis in the sport at a hearing of the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council in Paris tomorrow.

“The way this is handled could be critical to Mosley’s future. If he feels that Di Montezemolo is making a personal attack and an attack on the FIA as whole, Mosley will consider that he has no choice but to stand again.”

The FIA and FOTA have been at odds ever since FIA decided in April to set up a budget cap of around $60 million for the 2010 Formula One season.

The teams opposed the rule, preferring a gradual decline of spendings, angry at FIA in general for not being consulted over the issue and at Mosley in particular for his authoritarian rule.

As a result, the FOTA teams (Ferrari, Brawn GP, McLaren-Mercedes, Toyota, BMW-Sauber, Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Renault) Friday announced a breakaway series. Mosley countered with legal threats but withdrew them later.

Wednesday’s hearing could prove decisive for the outcome of the saga.

Di Montezemolo, part of the World Council as Ferrari boss, is rumoured to call for a vote of confidence on Mosley. But that may not be the case if it becomes clear that Mosley will step down after 16 years on the job in October.

A vote of no confidence would be before the full FIA general assembly with its 222 members. There Mosley claimed an overwhelming victory last year when he asked for a vote of confidence over a video affair.