The simmering feud between the major Formula 1 teams and the sport's sanctioning body has erupted into a full-blown civil war, with eight of the 10 teams announcing they are leaving at the end of the season to launch their own race series.
The Formula One Teams Association has been at odds with the Federation Internationale d'Automobile over a proposal by FIA President Max Mosley to adopt a budget cap. Mosley has long been obsessed with reining in the stratospheric cost of racing, but the big teams - led by Ferrari - strenuously opposed his plan to limit spending to 100 million Euros next year and 45 million Euros a year thereafter.
Proving he's one of the dumbest guys to come down the pike, Mosley thought he could stare down the teams. On the eve of the British Grand Prix, the teams poked him in the eye.
The teams had provisionally agreed to compete next season and were willing to work with Mosely to meet his cost-cutting goal, but said, in effect, "Ditch any talk of the cap and and we'll be on the grid for sure. Until then, we're signing up conditionally."
Mosley and F1 capo di tutti capi Bernie Eccelstone essentially told the teams, "Sign up unconditionally and then we'll talk." The FIA gave the teams until today to sign on the dotted line.
Instead, they voted to bolt.
"The wishes of the majority of the teams are ignored," FOTA said in a statement. "These teams therefore have no alternative other than to commence the preparation for a new championship which reflects the values of its participants and partners."
The FIA isn't backing down. It says today's the deadline for signing up to compete next season, and it fully intends to enforce it. What's more, it plans to sue FOTA.
“The actions of FOTA as a whole, and Ferrari in particular, amount to serious violations of law including willful interference with contractual relations, direct breaches of Ferrari's legal obligations and a grave violation of competition law,” the FIA said in a statement. “The FIA will be issuing legal proceedings without delay. Preparations for the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship continue but publication of the final 2010 entry list will be put on hold while the FIA asserts its legal rights.”
That final entry list could be mighty short. The teams heading for the exit are Ferrari, McLaren Mercedes, BMW Sauber, Toyota, Renault, Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Brawn GP. The teams aren't likely to back down - especially since Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo leads FOTA. Mosely's hardball approach is doomed to failure.
"That's not negotiating at all," David Hobbs, a SpeedTV commentator and multiple racing champion, said recently. "That's what's been passing for diplomacy on the world stage these past few years. It's like saying to those guys, 'OK Iran, get rid of your nuclear program, and then we'll talk about whether you should have it.' That's not diplomacy at all. Who's going to agree to that?"
Hey Max and Bernie -- when an elder sportsman of your sport compares your diplomatic skills to those of the Bush Administration, you're doing it wrong.
It might just cost Mosley his job. The FIA World Council meets Wednesday, and his future as president could be up for discussion.
"I think the trouble is that Max has gone too far with this and the teams have suddenly said 'I'm sorry, we can't take it any more'," Jackie Stewart, the three-time world champ and a longtime critic of Mosley, told Reuters today. "It may well be that Max Mosley has to go.
"I think a lot of people are kind of fed up with the dictatorial attitude," Stewart added. "He has a great position of power but big trees do blow over."
It isn't just the teams and pundits coming down hard on the FIA. Some other heavy-hitters are siding with FOTA. The organizers of the Monaco Grand Prix -- the premier event of the season -- reportedly won't stage a race next year if Ferrari isn't on the grid. Eccelstone, who seems to exist only to squeeze every last cent out of F1's global popularity, didn't have much to say about the sport's future.
"No idea. Speak to Max," he told reporters at Silverstone, site of this weekend's British Grand Prix, according to Reuters. Looks like Eccelstone is backing away slowly and leaving Mosley to fend for himself.
As of now, the teams officially signed up for next year are Williams and Force India alongside newcomers Team US F1, Campos Grand Prix and Manor Grand Prix. The upstarts have never competed at this level before and God only knows how far along they are in development of their cars. What's more, everyone will be running Cosworth engines - even Williams and Force India, because they currently get their engines from Toyota and Mercedes, respectively.
So unless Mosley comes to his senses, what we're left with is essentially a spec series featuring a bunch of teams that generate zero excitement and almost certainly won't be racing in Monaco.
Heck of a job, Maxie!
Editor's note: Looks like we were wrong when we said Ferrari was bluffing.
Photo: Ferrari
