Mosley and the GPMA Agree on the Future of Formula 1
In a Munich press conference on November 15th, FIA president
Max Mosley and GPMA head Burkhard Göschel announced that the two
sides in a long-running dispute over the governance and direction
of Formula 1 had agreed on terms for peace. The devil will lie in
the details and agreeing them, but what is certain now is that Mosley
and the manufacturers are going to reshape the sport based upon
the answer to but one repeated question: will it sell road cars?

Son of FIA Fan Survey
Figures Never Lie. People, On the Other Hand...

Born Again Racers
What do Juan Pablo Montoya and Tony Stewart have in common? In
addition to rides in the Nextel Cup next year, each has a passion for racing. The paths they are taking to satisfy that passion, and to
put some fun back in their professional lives, are as similar as
their backgrounds are different.

Auf Wiedersehen
In Italy, Michael Schumacher won in front of the tifosi, then
announced his retirement. We look at a career that alternated
between demonstrations of his consummate talent and the dark side
of his force. Also posted as a (brief) Italian GP race report.

Renault in the Crosshairs
Coming on the heels of the mass damper ruling and appeal, the
stewards' decision that Fernando Alonso impeded Felipe Massa in
qualifying and the resulting penalty provided what many saw as simply
further evidence that the FIA is targeting Renault in an attempt to
manipulate the championship battle in favor of Ferrari and a retiring
Michael Schumacher. The reaction to the widespread outrage by FIA
president Max Mosley only fanned the flames of suspicion.

A Matter of Interpretation
Renault's mass damper system is illegal, but in the end, only because
that is what four appeals court judges decided. Reading the rules
can easily lead to an equally supportable, but diametrically opposite
conclusion. And therein lies the problem with attempting to innovate
in Formula 1 these days.

Mosley Pulls the Plug on Negotiations, Engine Freeze and Other '08 Rules Will Stand
At the German Grand Prix, FIA president Max Mosley and the teams had
one last chance to agree to the GPMA's 'Indianapolis Proposal' and
Mosley's Engine Fund. On Saturday, Mosley ended the negotiations,
abruptly and unilaterally, at least in part, it appeared, because the
manufacturers had foiled his plan to substitute Flavio Briatore's
Mecachrome concern and Renault for Cosworth as the contracted engine
supplier for the independents. We examine off-stage events in the
days preceding Mosley's decision.

Who You Gonna Trust?
In a routine about organized religions, the late comic Lenny Bruce
observed that there should be no individual hustling in the Promised
Land. Yet if Formula 1, Mecca to millions of race fans, has a
surplus of anything, it is factions seeking individual advantage and
power. Max Mosley and the GPMA manufacturers are only the most
obvious. To the list must be added the so-called independents,
Mecachrome owner Flavio Briatore, Cosworth, Ferrari, Renault, and
CVC’s investors and Bernie Ecclestone. Considering them either
individually or in their various, shifting alliances, one is left
with a simple but fervent plea: God help the sport, because no one
else looks likely to do that.

Max Rejects GPMA's Second Offer
Having failed to obtain unanimous approval for the 'Indianapolis
Proposal,' the GPMA agreed to meet Max Mosley's demand for an annual
$19 million 'Engine Fund,' increasing their previous offer by
50 percent. This, too, was rejected by Mosley, in a press release
issued by the FIA.

Prelude to a Challenge: The GPMA Begins to Make Its Case
With mere hours remaining before the expiration of the deadline for
the teams to agree on an alternative to Max Mosley's 2008-10 engine
freeze, the Grand Prix Manufacturers Assn. effectively acknowledged
that the necessary unanimous agreement would not be obtained. In its
first public statement in many months, the GPMA outlined its
proposal, questioned Mosley's governance, suggested his duplicity,
and said, darkly, that it was keeping its options open.

Exception to the Rulers
The dispute over the rules which will define Formula 1 from either
2007 or 2008 is quickly coming to an end. While the starting date
remains to be decided, it seems certain that FIA president Max Mosley
has already succeeded in imposing a long-term engine freeze and other
rules which will strip Formula 1 of much of its fan appeal. The
question now is a simple one: denied justice within the FIA, will the
GPMA manufacturers and some new allies among the other teams pursue
it elsewhere. We examine recent actions by both sides, and the risks
to the sport coming from both.

Deconstructing Max and Bernie
After reviewing what Max Mosley and Bernie Ecclestone had to say to a
German interviewer prior to the British GP, and what Mosley told the
press at Silverstone, we've finally reached the saturation point with
what Lord Tennyson called the blackest of lies, a difficult to
penetrate mixture of truth and fiction. We contrast what they said
with an alternate reality.

Nogotiation: Mosley Ends Talks With Manufacturers
In an unscheduled press conference today (June 9th) at Silverstone,
FIA president Max Mosley announced that he had unilaterally ended the
negotiations over altering the engine freeze he had previously
written into his 'draft' sporting regulations for 2008. Mosley's
decision came three weeks in advance of the deadline he had written
into his rules for such alterations. Previously, Mosley had exempted
his engine freeze from being abolished by the teams, although the
power to do so was not provided to him under his own rules, or under
the FIA statutes. Mosley's announcement came as the Grand Prix
Manufacturers Assn. members were beginning to conduct a final series
of meetings at Silverstone precisely to reach final agreement upon a
proposal to submit to Mosley for modify the engine freeze, while
still meeting his cost-reduction objective. Subsequent meetings were
canceled after Mosley's press conference.

A Version of History and Current Events
FIA president Max Mosley and Bernie Ecclestone, the operating head of
the commercial rights-holding entity for Formula 1, have given a very
lengthy and wide-ranging interview to Michael Smith of ‘Auto Motor
und Sport.’ The text has been released by the FIA, and appears below.
What follows is the view of two sides in a four-way dispute which
continued today in a meeting of the Formula 1 Commission, will
continue in meetings slated for this weekend at Silverstone, and
almost certainly will occupy the participants and the headlines well
after the June 30th deadline for altering the 2008 regulations. We
expect other sides of this story to become available beginning after
the British Grand Prix, but for the moment, without comment, here’s
what Mosley and Ecclestone had to say.

The Rule of Lawlessness
Two thousand years ago, Aristotle wrote that, "The rule of law is
better than that of any individual." In the Middle Ages, Henry
de Bracton observed that, "there is no king where will rules, and not
law." What both understood is no less true today: the rule of law is
sacred to any society, and violating it invites revolution. In
removing an engine freeze from the democratic process that he
codified in the 2008 F1 regulations, Max Mosley stands exposed as a
dictator. By extension, he has placed everyone at risk of his whim,
for those who are with him today can as easily find themselves at
odds with him tomorrow, and equally devoid of the protections
afforded only when the rule of law, not man, prevails.

2006 Indianapolis 500 Starting Grid
Several versions of the Indy grid sheet, variously showing individual
and cumulative lap times and gaps, teams/sponsors, our unique 'TV
Grid' to prepare viewers for the way the start will likely be
broadcast and a traditional grid, much as the drivers will consider it.

Mindy's Last Ride
Forget prospering. Simply to survive, a racing series needs exciting
racing which appeals to more than 'gear heads' like us, a sympathetic
and dramatic presentation at the tracks and on television, and
promotion which brings an increasing audience to the sport. American
open-wheel racing -- the Indy Racing League and Champ Car -- falls
into the 'none of the above' category, and survives solely because
the series owners' pockets are deeper than was CART's war chest.
Something has to be done, and done quickly, because the sport is
heading toward Mindy's Last Ride.

Of Skirmishes and Battle Plans
The GPMA teams have all filed entries for the FIA Formula 1
championship in 2008. Like other recent events, that is being widely
interpreted as meaning the threat of a rival series has been averted.
This, the only detailed and complete examination of what has taken
place behind the scenes recently, sets the record straight, and shows
why a rival series remains somewhere between likely and inevitable.

The Tires, They Are A-Changing
The first race of the 2006 F1 season will see the debut of smaller,
V8 engines, which appear likely to have a major impact on races.
Much of the attention will, however, be on the impact of a radically
different new Ôshoot-outŐ qualifying system and the return of in-race
tire changes, which collectively should have a much greater impact
on the show. We look at the new rules, and what they suggest.

2006 Race Report File Naming Convention
The file names for RaceFax DotCom 2006 race reports identify
the series (Formula 1 or MotoGP), the race, and the file content
(starting grid, race results, etc.). Herewith, the code breaker.

First Pass: The 2008 F1 Sporting Regulations
At the end of February, FIA president Max Mosley released the first
draft of the 2008 Formula 1 Sporting Regulations to a select list of
current and potential teams. Here's your copy.

The End of Life As We Have Known It
FIA president Max Mosley has formalized his March 31st entry deadline
for the 2008 Formula 1 season in a letter to the teams. World Council
approval, while necessary, is a mere formality. One of the
enticements to entering is the ability to 'consult' with Mosley on
the 2008 technical regulations, previously released in draft form,
and the draft sporting regulations he sent to all the non-GPMA teams
at the end of February. We examine methods, motives and the proposed
sporting regulations' impact on the distribution of power and the
shape of the racing to debut in 2008.

Formula 1 War Diary
FIA president Max Mosley is attempting to make Formula 1 a mirror
held up to the 1970s. Then, F1 was ruled by a dictator, Jean-Marie
Balestre, and independent teams created parity, and what was arguably
the golden era of Formula 1. But the past is prologue, not future.
Back to a 40-year-old future is a fatally flawed concept, as the IRL
continues to demonstrate in its decline, not least because its head
is as tragically flawed as Mosley. The choice now is between two
series, or one which will be more a Frankenstein than a '70s clone.
We examine the events that over four years have brought us to this point.

Mosley Plays Robin Hood While the Manufacturers Hide In Sherwood Forest
Early in February, Max Mosley donned tights to play Robin Hood,
'suggesting' that money be taken from the rich manufacturers and
given to the poor independents. Like Ferrari. That, said the GPMA,
violated the FIA/FOA/EU agreement on separation of powers, and so the
swordplay, or at least word play began, with Mosley having all the
good lines. It all took place against a backdrop of financial
filings for Bernie Ecclestone's Empire, with Flavio Briatore off
stage, calling for everyone to climb into bed with Robin and the
Sheriff of Nottingham, an image we'd just as soon not conjure.
Do you believe in coincidence? Neither do we.

Renault R26: Radical Evolution:
Renault calls it aggressive development, but either way, it seems a
contradiction in terms. Yet the latest offering from the world
champion manufacturer is precisely that, at once familiar and fresh.
Resisting the temptation to rest on their laurels, the Anglo-French
team has opted for a completely new car, yet one which is clearly
evolved from the concepts proven in 2005. Forced by the rules to
create a new engine, the team may well have addressed what was the
most suspect weapon in its arsenal last year. If the car is as right
as the eye says it is, and if competitive power is added to last
year’s enviable reliability, Renault and champion Fernando Alonso may
just do the double.

Honda RA106
And Now, for Something Completely Different....

In an era of cookie-cutter cars, Honda's Geoff Willis has taken a
walk on the aerodynamic wild side. It may not be the Brabham fan
car, but it is definitely a welcome breath of fresh air. When bland
has become the norm, whether it works seems almost secondary.

Ferrari 248 F1
With the 248 F1, Ferrari has largely gone against what is developing
as the conventional wisdom in Formula 1, opting for downforce over
drag reduction, despite the mandatory reduction of 20 percent in
engine capacity. Ferrari, it appears, is counting on Paolo
Martinelli's engine department to let Ferrari pull off a powerplay.

McLaren MP4-21
The Continuing Saga of the
Incredible Shrinking Race Car

The MP4-20 won the most Grands Prix in 2004, and but for reliability
issues and driver errors might well have won both championships. It
seems a bit unkind, then, to revive the old saying that, if it isn't
broken, don't fix it, but that seems to have been the guiding
philosophy behind the MP4-21, which is clearly evolved from its
predecessor, in addition to being downsized in adaptation to the
smaller V8 engine and radiators, and to new aero rules.

Bad Vibrations. BMW Introduces the F1.06 V8.
BMW enters Formula 1 as a full-fledged constructor with a car which
is equal parts evolution and revolution. A drooping nose sets the
F1.06 apart from virtually every new car introduced over the last
10 years, and points to the knock-on effects of the change to
vibration-prone V8s.

Kaizen! Toyota's TF106 V8: A Continuing Work in Progress
With an only subliminal tip of the hat to '60s manufacturing guru
W. Edwards Deming, Toyota has debuted it's 2006 F1 challenger, which
it will subject to kaizen, Toyota's name for its version of Deming's
process of continual evolution and improvement.