12/07/2009
NEWS STORY
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FIA presidency hopeful Ari Vatanen maintained a high profile at the Nurburgring over the weekend, making full use of the occasion to set out his stall.
As more and more pressure is applied to Max Mosley, with much of the media finally coming out and urging the Englishman not to stand again, indeed, to stand down as soon as possible, Vatanen, seen here with Mark Webber, took every opportunity to push his manifesto.
"We must make sure they stay in the sport," he said of the manufacturers, a view not shared by the current FIA president.
"In the past two years we have been much more on the battleground than on common ground," he added, taking the opportunity to say that that the future of the sport should not be about ego or power trips.
Asked to comment directly regarding Mosley, Vatanen showed a degree of honour not usually associated with the sport's governing body these days: "I will never throw dirt on Max," he said. "I have a very good relationship with him. I totally disagree with many things he has done, he probably disagrees with me but that is on another level."
Among Vatanen's strongest supporters is Robert Darbelnet, president of the American Automobile Association, along with Germany's ADAC, one of the biggest critics of Mosley following revelations regarding his private life last year.
In addition to the FOTA teams and the media, even CVC and Bernie Ecclestone are now all but calling on Mosley to vacate his position. Yesterday's revelation that the sports owners are pushing ahead with GP1 makes it clear that they are willing to do whatever is necessary to preserve the sport as we know it, a move which would be devastating for the FIA.