F1: Mosley Goes, Endorses Jean Todt

Formula 1

F1: Mosley Goes, Endorses Jean Todt

Max Mosley has re-confirmed that he won’t be standing for re-election as FIA President in October...

Adam Cooper | http://www.speedtv.com | Posted July 15, 2009 Balen (BEL)

In a letter to the FIA member clubs, Max Mosley called on them to support Frenchman Jean Todt. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Max Mosley has re-confirmed that he won’t be standing for re-election as FIA President in October. And as expected, he has made it clear that he favors Jean Todt as his successor.

Todt will face an election showdown with his former driver, Ari Vatanen, although other candidates may yet emerge.

Although the former Peugeot and Ferrari boss has yet to officially declare his hand, his interest in the job has been clear for some time. He has recently been canvassing for vital votes from clubs in Africa, and rumor suggests that he was touring the continent on the FIA’s plane, courtesy of Mosley.

In a letter to the FIA member clubs Mosley called on them to support Todt and said that the Frenchman is "the ideal person to continue but also to extend the work of the last 16 years."

Mosley had said at the World Motor Sport Council meeting on June 24 that he would stand down as part of a deal to secure the future of F1, but he appeared to change his mind when FOTA bosses suggested to the media that he had been forced out. He suggested that he would have to stay of after all to protect the interests of the FIA.

He says that he has had messages of support from 100 clubs who wanted him to stay on. However he says that he has already changed his domestic arrangements and feels that, at 70, it’s time to slow down.

F1 RaceCast Online Now! Follow Formula One live online timing & scoring, practice, qualifying, race coverage, commentary and more on SPEEDtv.com!