Ward vs Todt

[vintly]

I don't know much about Ward, but I'd like to see him replace Todt, not only for this from GP Update website:

Todt rival Ward could oppose Bahrain GP

Oct.1 (GMM) Jean Todt's rival FIA presidential candidate has announced he would consider dropping the highly controversial Bahrain grand prix.

David Ward told the BBC that current president Todt is guilty of "poor decision-making" over green-lighting recent editions of the race amid continuing civil unrest.

"If it looks like the situation is deteriorating or not improving, what there should be - because this could happen tomorrow in another part of the world - is a standard process to handle this, that is immune from suggestions that one place is being treated differently from another," he said.

Ward, however, denied that his close links to former FIA president Max Mosley are powering his push to dethrone Todt.

"I am doing this entirely for my own reasons," he said.

"The reasons I'm running is I can see failures going on in terms of governance that I think are quite serious."

[cosworth151]

He certainly makes sense on that issue. When Todt took over, I didn't think that the FIA could get any worse. It has, much, much worse.

[Scott]

I just don't know.  To me Max was as evil as they get...if this guy is a buddy, then what're we comparing, who would be worse?

I figure the best way to judge is to ask Bernie.  If Bernie can't stand him, then he's probably the man for the job. 

[vintly]

I thought Mosely was very good. I particularly liked the way he went to Ratzenberger's funeral instead of Senna's, purely because Ratzenberger was forgotten about at the time, and everyone went to Senna's funeral instead.

He was honourable, AND he got rid of Balestre who was anything but.

Agreed his early political involvement with his father isn't something to be proud of, but he wasn't, and quickly stopped.

[Dare]

I didn't think Max was all that bad either and
he surely knew how to throw a party.He could
give as well as take judging by his bondage pics

[Scott]

Bet you're sorry you weren't invited Dare. 

I'm not referring to anything his parents did, or really what he did on his own time...couldn't care a less, nobody should be judged that way.  Going to Ratzenberger's funeral is absolutely a classy thing to do.  I think we all have our moments good and bad, but what I was actually referring to was Max as FIA President, nothing to do with his personal life.

In my opinion Mosley was little more than a puppet of Bernie's, and the two together had way to many conflicts to not be passing money in back rooms.  Bernie got everything he wanted from the FIA as long as Max was there (100year rights???  WT Heck was THAT?), the Mclaren $100m scam, along with every 'International World Council' tribunal that was so pathetically orchestrated by Max to benefit Ferrari and chop away at Mclaren.  Not to mention Max's desperate grabs for attention.  He had an opinion on everything, and I believe the FIA President should not always express their own opinion, especially on something that hasn't been through due process or the courts.
 

[Irisado]

I'd very much like to see Ward displace Todt, based on what I've heard from him so far.  Todt has been very hands off, and has seemed to me to pass the buck more often than not.  I don't like that approach to governance of the sport.

[cosworth151]

Don't forget Mosley's mega-gaf - The "Tire-gate" fiasco at the 2005 USGP. Still, for all of his miscues, he was miles better than his predecessor and his successor.

[Scott]

Can't say much about Todt because like Irisado said, he's pretty hands off.  But my jaw drops every time one of you guys says Max wasn't so bad. 

Just simply taking the one act, of selling all F1 rights to Bernie FOR 100 YEARS!  I didn't even think a contract like that would be legal.  To transfer rights ownersip from what is supposedly a democratic body to a corporation for 100years for ANY sum of money is simply criminal.

[vintly]

Well let's see how F1 develops AFTER Bernie. I don't think it'll be as good without him. Personally I hope he outlives his 100 years contract, then negotiates a few hundred more.

[Scott]

It was under Max's watch that the classic F1 circuits started to disappear.  Only with Bernie insisting to go to the moneyed tracks did we lose Austria, France, Imola, Estoril to name but a few. 

You can say Bernie has done a lot for F1, but that's only because you don't have anyone to compare him to.  I would suggest Bernie has TAKEN a lot from F1, or simply that he could have done so, so much more.  Good for him, he's a brutal negotiator, and hammered out hundreds of deals in F1, bringing more wealth to the sport.  If his heart was really in F1, and not just to make the 'deal' and collect the money (so his 25yr old daughter can buy the most expensive house in the US - the old Spelling spread), he could have maybe taken a bit less for himself and perhaps have managed to put a bit more back into the sport, tracks, infrastructure and back to the teams so that we don't have to have so many pay drivers and struggling teams.  F1 could be at the top technologically, talent and cutting edge tracks.  I contend that it isn't there, BECAUSE of Bernie.

[lkjohnson1950]

Well said Scott. I totally agree. The combination of Max and Bernie was brutal for F1.

[vintly]

I don't think Max could have stopped Bernie doing what he wanted, nor anyone else. Bernie got Max on board in the early days because he valued Max's legal skills - he was useful to him and probably still is.

Note I didn't trot out the 'Bernie has done a lot for F1' line – he's done a lot for himself and CVC shareholders, via F1 – agreed. I'm not sure it would be as exciting without him, he's such a character and leads from the front. The demise of some classic tracks and the lurch towards wherever the rich guys are is an ugly aside, but F1 is still at the top in a number of ways, and you can't have it all.

BUT - I take your point and generally agree with it. I also take back my comment about Bernie negotiating hundreds of more years to his contract. His time is almost up, as it should be. I just hope the next guy has the guts, as well as the vision, to ensure F1 is as entertaining as it is now. Cutting edge tracks and talent can be boring if not sold well. Hopefully we'll get the best of both worlds, fingers crossed.

[Alianora La Canta]

Both Ward and Todt were friends of Max during Max's presidency. In Max's time, a representative appeared to have to either be friends with Max or be good at pretending to be, otherwise they wouldn't last long in post because they'd be tired of Max's behaviour.

Just to complicate matters: a third candidate has thrown his hat into the ring. Bin Sulayem, one of Mosley's closest allies in the Middle East, has proposed formally that he should be elected President.

Todt's behaviour has disappointed me. He let WRC go to rack and ruin through messing up the tendering procedures for key services, let F1 reach the point of collapse due to putting psuedopolitics over sport and general long-term thinking, and only avoided doing the same with WEC because the ACO insisted on retaining partial control. He's made a hash of the junior series reorganisation, such that nobody knows what they're doing, and doesn't seem to have been much help in any other aspect.

WTCC, which has been neglected since the year dot, has now overtaken F1 for "most-watched series in motorsport. Making F1 "as entertaining as it is now" won't cut it, as it is largely seen as being much less entertaining than before the DRS/KERS/Pirelli era (if the people I've spoken to face-to-face and many of those I've spoken to on social media are anything to go by). Jean's quietly doing as poor a job as Mosley did in his last term, having failed to understand why Mosley's last term hit problems.

I think Bernie would be content with any of the three as President, as long as they fall into CVC's line once elected. I don't see anything in any of the three candidates' manifestoes that would give Bernie any cause for concern in that regard.

[F1fanaticBD]

Well put Alia, touching things that really mattered, unfortunately will never addressed in terms of politics.

I am not so sure if Ward is being elected, will be able to implement this plea of dropping Bahrain, as because, this region have far too much investment in F1, and they will not be pleased to see a drop of a race in this region. This may be the reason alone why Bahrain is still there, and currently named as the track for 2nd & 3rd Pre-Season testing ground, because it will give more correlation for tyre in heat. Now if a race track is being taken down on the basis of certain political situation in the country, surely that should not have been added for pre-season testing. So obviously for reasons we know way too clear, Bahrain will stay.