Fuck the FIA

[.RJ]

[ScottyB]

hahahha, owned

[Myuki]

rofl

[GQROB]

A whole lot of kissing my ass will have to take place in order for me to return to a USGP.
This is the time when the IRL and Champ Car should fill in. Combine both efforts and make a kick ass race series to run at Tony's twisty race track.

Rob

[G.Irish]

This is getting serious folks...rumors of FIA banning Michelin for the rest of the season, effectively banning all 7 Michelin teams: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns15080.html">http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns15080.html</a><!-- m -->

Paul Stoddart's (Minardi's Team Principal) account of the events leading up to the Indy GP: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.motorsport.com/news/article.asp?ID=189438&FS=F1">http://www.motorsport.com/news/article. ... 9438&FS=F1</a><!-- m -->

[.RJ]

On a somewhat related note.... BMW is buying a major stake in Sauber for 2006

[ScottyB]

nice articles G. i had no idea the political bs was that deep. what a blower.

[Myuki]

nice articles G. i had no idea the political bs was that deep. what a blower.

yea, good stuff G. It's all screwed up on the inside and up top, so the sport and drivers and regular guys in it, look bad at the same time. Stupid FIA

[.RJ]

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.crash.net/uk/en/news_view.asp?cid=1&nid=113503">http://www.crash.net/uk/en/news_view.as ... nid=113503</a><!-- m --> - interview with Mosley

[ScottyB]

sounds like Mosley is simply incapable of thinking of the chicane proposal as a safety solution. that gets me considering many teams wanted it for that reason.

he keeps talking about how cars are setup specifically for indy and the chicane would put others at an advantage.....how? all the cars were setup for indy's regular layout, if a chicane is put in, everyone has to change.....seems fair across the board to me.

overall i can see Mosley's view on keep the sporting aspect of the race consistent but he handled this particular situation poorly. he better hope they do some reimbursing for indy 2006 or the race will probably see an even worse turnout.

[G.Irish]

At this point Indy and the US is not even the most of their worries. He needs to be worrying about not causing the collapse of Formula 1. The manufacturers are already not happy with the FIA and the current profit sharing agreement. If the FIA deals a heavy-handed, humiliating punishment to the teams over the USGP it is very possible that you'll see several of the teams pull out altogether and try to get the GPWC rolling for next season.

It would undoubtedly be bad for the sport if that were to come to pass. For one, having the inmates running the asylum is only a recipe for more trouble. I can't see some of the more selfish and arrogant parties in F1 being able to agree with everyone else to make a new series work well. But they may not be left with much choice.

[GQROB]

A few pics.

[JackoliciousLegs]

LOL... nice pics

[Evan]

sounds like Mosley is simply incapable of thinking of the chicane proposal as a safety solution. that gets me considering many teams wanted it for that reason.

Are you f-ing kidding me? Put in a chicane overnight the night before a race, after all the teams have already practiced on the track? Just because one tire manufacturer cant get their heads out of their asses? What next? Michelin will demand that courses be changed to suit their tires or they threaten to pull out?

This was 100% michelin's fuckup. The FIA followed the rules set forth long ago, which was only fair to the teams not on michelins. No need for tinfoil hats, conspiracy theories, or political garbage. It really is pretty fucking simple.

[ScottyB]

Are you f-ing kidding me? Put in a chicane overnight the night before a race, after all the teams have already practiced on the track?

easy killer. i'm not saying throw a chicane in there while nobodies looking and let em figure it out at 180 mph.

i'm saying from what i gather, Mosely made no attempt to consider the option at any time, and that was an option many of the teams themselves asked about (they were the ones on michelins, i know). i not an idiot, i understand its not normal procedure to throw a chicane into a track layout, but perhaps it could have been a possibility if Mosely and the teams came to an agreement earlier (to give the teams some notice)instead of what happened.

i agree michelin ultimately f'ed up, but i wonder if there could have been a way to remedy the situation to at least allow the majority of the teams to compete.

[Evan]

Why should he consider it? It was blatantly against the rules to change the track.
Dont get me wrong, I am not a big fan of the FIA, but I think piling any bit of blame on them in this scenario is unfair.

This is the letter that FIA wrote to Michelin.
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.fia.com/resources/documents/914355186__20_06_2005_FIA_Michelin_letter.pdf">http://www.fia.com/resources/documents/ ... letter.pdf</a><!-- m -->

[quote]
2005 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX
20.06.2005

Formula One is a sporting contest. It must operate to clear rules. These cannot be negotiated each time a competitor brings the wrong equipment to a race.
At Indianapolis we were told by Michelin that their tyres would be unsafe unless their cars were slowed in the main corner. We understood and among other suggestions offered to help them by monitoring speeds and penalising any excess. However, the Michelin teams refused to agree unless the Bridgestone runners were slowed by the same amount. They suggested a chicane.

The Michelin teams seemed unable to understand that this would have been grossly unfair as well as contrary to the rules. The Bridgestone teams had suitable tyres. They did not need to slow down. The Michelin teams├óÔé¼Ôäó lack of speed through turn 13 would have been a direct result of inferior equipment, as often happens in Formula One. It must also be remembered that the FIA wrote to all of the teams and both tyre manufacturers on June 1, 2005, to emphasise that ├óÔé¼┼ôtyres should be built to be reliable under all circumstances├óÔé¼

[ScottyB]

i hadn't read the letter, thanks for posting that. the FIA brings up good points in it.

the whole situation just sucks....i guess ultimately i just hate to see that there isn't really a way to make a temporary fix that provides the fans with a real race but still maintains the integrity of the rules.

[G.Irish]

The problem is there has been a lot of ill will and hard feelings built up in the last few years between the FIA and the teams not called Ferrari. The teams (perhaps erroneously) have felt that the FIA has been favoring Ferrari and there have been many cases of inconsistent enforcement of the rules, bullying, and insulting behavior by the FIA. I think the Michelin teams were motivated in no small part by their desire to show the FIA that A. they are not willing to back down and B. there is no F1 with only 3 teams. In short I think part of their motivation was to show that they were not afraid of using the nuclear option.

In the coming weeks it'll be interesting to see what information comes to light. Max may have indeed tried to work with the teams to find an amicable solution or he could have been an asshole about it and said, "F you, I don't wanna hear it. Drive slower. Its not our problem" He could have been technically correct (in that driving slower is their only option under the rules) but he could have been practically wrong in the way he presented it. A major part of conflict resolution is how you communicate. Treating multinational, multibillion dollar companies like little children is only going to lead to more strife. I'd really like to hear exactly what it was he offered to the teams and the tone of it.

Another very real possibility is that one or more of the team principals purposeful led the rest of the teams down the path to boycott when they very easily had other options. The other Michelin teams perhaps did not want to break ranks with the GPWC group and went along when they shouldn't have.

Either way there was a lot more going on here than simply the tire issue. Michelin's incompetence just served as the catalyst for the teams releasing their frustration with the sanctioning body.

I just hope that at the end of all this that Grand Prix racing isn't totally destroyed. Then again maybe that'll mean we'll see more teams in Le Mans and/or Super GT.

[Evan]

Treating multinational, multibillion dollar companies like little children is only going to lead to more strife.

But when they threaten to take their toys and go home, how else should they be treated? The FIA was in a lose/lose situation here.
If they would have catered to michelin and slowed the course down, they would have been screwing over the properly prepared bridge teams, breaking the rules, and setting a dangerous precedent where the FIA accomodates unprepared/uncompetitive teams to make them competitive.
If they dont cater to michelin, well we see what has happened.

I really dont see how F1 is going to survive through this.
Either a CART/IRL style split or an all new series is coming methinks.
quite a shame, because the new proposed F1 rules looked to be fantastic

[JohnC]

Michelin Press Release