07/06/2011
NEWS STORY
Former FIA president Max Mosley remains confident that the Bahrain Grand Prix will not go ahead this year.
"I will be astonished if the event goes ahead," he told the BBC. "I don't think it will happen."
While the FIA continues to defend its decision, insisting that its fact finding mission reported back that all is well, Mosley poured doubt on the quality of the information it received from its inspector, FIA Vice President Carlos Gracia, who was himself originally appointed by the Englishman.
"The problem there was they sent someone to look at Bahrain but the gentleman they sent, a very, very nice man called Gracia, speaks no English and, as far as I know, speaks no Arabic," said Mosley. "He was then taken around by the representatives of the government and had no knowledge of what was really going on, and above all he didn't ask to see the people who a human rights lawyer would like to see."
When it was suggested that Gracia spoke to opposition groups, Mosley said: "Apparently they are very close to the government and I don't think he would have been allowed to speak to them if not."
The Englishman, who, like many, believes the future of the race rests with the teams, raised a point that until now has been largely overlooked.
"One thing that everybody seems to have overlooked is that the teams have to agree a change of calendar," he said. "You can't simply move the Indian race from one point to another without asking all the people who have entered. You need the written agreement of every team and I don't believe that is going to be forthcoming."