| Formula One has been working through a civil war. | | | | Mosley tried to simply set the rules without consulting |
| The teams have been going at it with the FIA | | | | the teams. |
| governing body, more importantly the head of the FIA | | | | The third week of June saw the end of Formula One |
| in Max Mosley. Well, the war has come to a grinding | | | | on the horizon. The teams were setting up a separate |
| end at the last possible moment to the relief of all F1 | | | | championship. Formula One was claiming it would |
| fans. | | | | move forward with a bunch of privateers. A total |
| Formula One has long been on a path of self | | | | catastrophe awaited. So, why did things settle? The |
| destruction. The problem has been the increased | | | | most likely reason is open wheel racing in the United |
| budgets required to race. Teams like Toyota and | | | | States. The same exact thing happened in the U.S. |
| Ferrari are rumored to have budgets in excess of | | | | and the result was a disaster. Open wheel racing has |
| $300 million dollars for a season that lasts less than 20 | | | | become nearly irrelevant compared to NASCAR. If it |
| races. This funding has resulted in many of the former | | | | weren't for Danica Patrick, it probably would be. The |
| powers in Formula One fading away. The Williams | | | | teams and powers that be in Formula One certainly |
| Team is a classic example. | | | | took note of this. |
| The world wide economic meltdown forced F1 to face | | | | So, how did the civil war end? The simple answer is |
| up to the cost issue. The issue is sponsorship, but not | | | | Max Mosley and the FIA caved in. The budget rules |
| in 2009. Instead, the hit will not occur until 2010 when | | | | for 2010 were scrapped. The mandatory car changes |
| sponsor contracts expire and are not renewed. This | | | | were scrapped. Max Mosley even agreed not to run |
| coming meltdown caused the teams and FIA head | | | | for re-election as head of the FIA this coming June. |
| Max Mosley to start going at it over the subject of | | | | The end result was the teams gained nearly |
| cost reductions. Things quickly spiraled out of control. | | | | everything they originally demanded and the FIA |
| The big teams in Formula One formed the Formula | | | | received next to nothing. The FIA has always kept |
| One Team Association, better known as FOTA. | | | | control of F1 by forcing divisions in the teams' unity. |
| FOTA was led by the Ferrari president - Luca di | | | | This time the teams stayed together with the |
| Montezemolo. This was akin to all baseball teams | | | | exception of a few small teams. That unity effectively |
| putting together a union and going after the | | | | won them the war. |
| commissioner of baseball. It was nothing less than a | | | | So, who is the biggest winner in this mess? The fans! |
| mutiny and presaged a full blown brawl. Everyone | | | | Formula One will continue as we know it and a |
| agreed that costs needed to be cut, but the question | | | | disastrous division into two series will not occur. |
| was how. Things also became very personal when | | | | |