Creating History: How the Can-Am Series Came to Be
The Canadian American Challenge has long since passed into racing
legend, but it remains fresh in the minds of those privileged to
have seen the races. At the time, the Can-Am was arguably the
premier road racing series in the world, its technology and the
speed of its largely unlimited sports racing cars at least rivaling
that of Formula 1, the series from which it took many of its drivers
and its primary constructor, McLaren. Many books and films have
recorded the races. Here, for the first time, is the story of how
the series was created, by the man who brought together the tracks,
the constructors, the teams and the sponsors, so that together they
could write history.

Two Blind Mice: See How They Run
After 16 long and bloody years, Max Mosley's reign as president of
the FIA is coming to an end as it began, the election for his
replacement being characterized by threats, intimidation, lies, and
a frequent disregard for the rule of law. Mosley and his minions
have heavily involved themselves in the contest, evidently in
violation of French law. The campaign has been characterized by
false or unsupported accusations from both sides and by Mosley.
There have been numerous misrepresentations of fact and an
assortment of dirty tricks. And one camp, determined to take the
moral high ground, thus armed itself with a butter knife before
stepping into a gunfight. With the election imminent, we examine the
candidates' platforms and campaigns, the stumbles, the lies and the tricks.

Justice Suspended, Morality Ignored
In judging Renault for an act of "unparalleled severity," the FIA's
World Motor Sport Council dealt harshly with Flavio Briatore, less
so with Pat Symonds, and let Renault walk, despite citing two
regulations which state the team is responsible for the actions of
its employees. But those rules have always been selectively employed
during Max Mosley's tenure as FIA president. As this case shows yet
again, without flexible ethics and morality, the FIA wouldn't have
any measure of either.

A Sport Corrupted
The Renault race-fixing incident will shortly be judged in
isolation, and that's as it should be. It is, however, just one more
example of what has become commonplace in Formula 1. Thus, in
addition to that case and its resolution, the FIA membership needs
to look at the broader picture and their own responsibility for
what has been done to the sport and its governing organization under
president Max Mosley. There is, after all, an election which will
shortly be in their hands, and change is required if the sport is
to be saved.

A Fit of Piquet Proves to Be Far More Than That
In reaction to being fired by the Renault team, Nelson Piquet has
admitted to the FIA that he intentionally crashed at Singapore last
year, in a successful attempt to move teammate Fernando Alonso from
a lowly grid position to victory. Worse, Piquet has charged that he
was instructed to crash -- and where and when -- by the team's
Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds. The FIA has investigated, and its
World Motors Sport Council will pass judgment on September 21st. We
examine the evidence collected so far and the events.

The 2009 Concorde
Why it was necessary, how it came about, what it contains and what it
should accomplish.

F1's Search for a Bridge Over Troubled Waters
The silence which has enveloped Formula 1's players since the
British Grand Prix is deceptive. Behind the scenes, lawyers for
the FOTA teams, the FIA and commercial rights holder CVC have been
racking up an impressive tally of billable hours as the three
parties attempt to reconcile their many differences and avoid
splitting the sport down the middle. Much progress has been made,
but the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and not all the
intentions are good. Progress is not resolution, and the many issues
that stand n the way of peace do not speak well for the outcome.

Back to Square One
In the immediate aftermath of their presumed victory in the
June 24th WMSC meeting, the FOTA team owners couldn't wait to take
their pound of flesh from FIA president Max Mosley, depriving him of
the one thing he needed most: an exit with head held high. In
reaction, he's made them painfully aware of what they should have
known all along: an agreement is only an agreement when it's signed.

The Evil of Lessers
As we were preparing to send this article, the news arrived
from today's WMSC meeting in Paris that Max Mosley has finally
accepted that he has lost the war, and that a peace treaty has
been agreed with the FOTA teams. According to team sources,
Mosley has agreed to remove himself from Formula 1 matters
until his term expires in October and will not then stand for
re-election. The 2009 regulations will remain in place for
2010, meaning there will be no budget cap. A new Concorde,
evidently agreed yesterday, will be signed by the FIA and FOM.
This article has been overtaken by events, but we are publishing
in the belief that it retains value, because it points out the
many problems still facing Formula 1, and because it shows how
and why Mosley found himself with his back to the wall, and in
the end, had to choose between destroying the sport and
surrender.

The FIA Friday Interview from Silverstone
Present: FOTA team principals Ross Brawn, Christian Horner and Martin
Whitmarsh, and Adam Parr, for F1 entrant Williams. In response to the
final question, by Tony Dodgins, the three FOTA members finally make
clear for F1 finds itself at this impasse: governance and trust.

Last Tango in Paris
With barely 48 hours remaining before the FIA is to publish the
supposedly final entry list for 2010, Max Mosley and the FOTA teams
exchanged a flurry of correspondence. All the letters purported to
be attempts at finding a mutually acceptable compromise, but each
offer included what the recipient was probably intended to see as at
least one fatal flaw. It thus seems inevitable that a number of
teams will be leaving F1 after 2009. With closing a team's doors not
a realistic option for most of the FOTA 8, a rival series seemed
increasingly likely.

Facing the Nuclear Option
Max Mosley's budget cap will either be the salvation of Formula 1
(his view) or make a mockery of its history (the FOTA teams' view).
After several weeks of on-again/off-again negotiations, the two
sides ended up as far apart on the eve of Mosley announcing a FOTA-
free 2010 entry list as they had been when he announced his cap-
based rules. Is this the end of life as we know it?

Crocodile Tiers
In which Lewis Hamilton and the McLaren sporting director are caught
lying to the Australian stewards, repeatedly, yet in exchange for
Ron Dennis being kicked upstairs and an act of contrition, driver
and team escape with a three-race suspended suspension. Mosley
pushes through his optional budget cap for 2010, to make Formula 1
a two-tier series. Outraged, Ferrari hints at legal action to stop
the cap, and Mosley declares that Formula 1 without Ferrari will
still be F1. As the sport totters between war, compromise and capitulation, bet on the latter two.

Deconstructing Formula 1
After months of debate and negotiation, the F1 teams, acting
under the FOTA banner, released a third insufficient set of
cost-reduction proposals, in a predictably ill-fated attempt
to keep FIA president Max Mosley from turning the sport into a
spec series. Unimpressed, and increasingly in fear that the
global economic crisis is likely to implode Formula 1, Mosley
has had the World Council approve the budget cap he has
favored for years. Like KERS, the spending cap will be
optional, meant to favor the independent teams by lifting all
the development and spec limitations for those who opt in. If
any subscribe to the cap, which remains to be seen, Formula 1
will become a two-class series in 2010. At that point, someone
should turn out the lights.

Mosley Gets His Budget Cap
Using the global economic crisis as justification, FIA president Max
Mosley has finally been able to introduce budget capping in Formula 1,
effective in 2010. The concept is optional, like KERS, and therein
probably lies its failing. We provide herein the WMSC decision on
this and other matters, and the text of a Q&A session Mosley has
released to explain and justify the capping concept. Our analysis
will follow shortly.

The Reckoning, Part Three
In the concluding part of our analysis of the state of Formula 1, we
look forward, examining the likely impact of the global economic
meltdown, the limited options the sport has as it attempts to adapt
to the new reality by reinventing itself, and the commercial and
sporting management of Formula 1.

The Reckoning, Part Two
In this second part of our look at the state of Formula 1, we
examine the rules planned for 2010 and beyond, how they came about,
and what other changes are likely. We also assess their likely
impact on the sporting and economic aspects of Formula 1. In part
three, we will look at the increased need for cost reduction, what
the new economic reality implies for the sport, it's limited
options, and the commercial and sporting management of Formula 1.

The Reckoning
The collapse of the world's economy has had a major impact on
Formula 1, with far more to come. In this first of three parts, we
examine the very belated fine tuning of the 2009 regulations, the
limited and probably temporary rapprochement between the
manufacturers and FIA president Max Mosley, and the 2009 Formula 1
cars. In part two (Feb. 2nd), we discuss the differing approaches to
future rules and cost reduction, and their likely impact on Formula 1.
In part three (Feb. 3rd), we look at the need for cost-reduction in
a new economic landscape, the players' actions and motivations, the
looming struggle over F1's money and the problems facing F1 in
reaction to the global recession/depression.