Max Mosley

Having seen a copy or picture on the DM website of the said leaflet, for its time it is fairly standard political electoral leaflet of a right wing party, not that different to the Enoch Powell views of the time. Were they racist? possibly, certainly by todays standards, but in those days not excessive. Max was bought up in a fascist family and their views were not that far away from the communist party views on race, Russia today still has similar views on race as did the old communist regime, what Max's views are in private are his, providing he doesn't promulgate them in public if he still has those 50 year old views it's OK. You can't change history, it has happened and no apology today is going to change it, really, except for a minority PC people or groups really care, the rest of us just get on with our lives.
 
Well my view of Enoch Powel is that he was a hugely racist individual, and I don’t think there is any doubt that Max Mosley is also a racist. But why it’s suddenly become a current news item is beyond me. A slow news day, or a reporter trying to grab kudos.?
 
It's because the Daily Mail is against Mosely's push for press regulation and they're trying to intimidate him. From today’s Guardian:

Asked by Channel 4 News about the line “coloured immigration threatens your children’s health”, Mosley said: “I think that probably is racist. I will concede that completely.”

But he said he had “no reason to apologise to anyone”, and added: “This was a statement in a leaflet which I am not even sure is genuine, which would never reflect my view. It would not reflect my view then or now because I simply wouldn’t dream of insulting people.”

He went on: “If that leaflet is genuine, I am responsible for it and it shouldn’t have been issued. I have never been a racist, I am not a racist, never will be a racist.”

Mosley told the Press Association: “I do not recall the leaflet referred to, which was allegedly issued 56 years ago. I said so in court and challenged lawyers for the News of the World to produce it, which they failed to do. I obviously would not have done that if I knew of its existence. My record in motorsport demonstrates that I do not tolerate racism and, like most people, my political views have changed over time.

“It appears that the historical investigation pursued by the Daily Mail is yet another misconceived attempt to intimidate and deter me. I will continue to campaign for the vital reforms needed to protect ordinary people against the bullying of newspapers like the Daily Mail.”

In response to the leaflet, Watson told the Mail: “My views on press regulation are well known and have not changed. The views expressed by Max as a young man are not the views he holds now, just as the Rothermere family no longer uses its newspapers to support fascism.”
 
Man who was raised by a ultra right wing politician used questionable racist terms in his youth? Surely this is for the none news section?

I'm not a Max fan by any means but give me strength.
 
Cathy Newman... again... It's like watching a person staring down the barrel of a loaded gun, anxiously monitoring their every move whilst waiting to see whether or not the person is going to pull the trigger.
 
Whether you agreed with his politics, or him as a person, he, along with Bernie, transformed F1, and his lasting legacy will be a much safer, more professional sport than what he inherited.

His other legacy is the budget cap that is only being introduced now. He recognised that the astronomical spending wasn't sustainable, and pushed to make F1 much more accessible to new teams.
 
thats very sad news, i didnt realise he was 81. i was only old enough to know max Mosley FIA reign towards the end. i k ow through my dad that apparently he wasnt popular.

which still surprises me as i think Jean Todt has proven that he was far better president that he was given credit for & the well over due budget cap he started the push for has come in this year
 
I've mixed feelings about Max's time in F1.

People often go on about the safety changes he championed but it's worth asking how many would he have made if they hadn't had to scrape three drivers out of the remains of their cars at Imola in 94?

It's also worth remembering that the reason those cars were massively unstable at the start of the 94 season was the ill-considered total ban on driver aids while doing nothing else to reduce the speed of the cars. It would have had much the same effect as banning a flight computer on a dynamically unstable fighter jet.

Mosley's biggest mistake however was to give all of the family silver to dear old Bernie with no questions asked. By the time Mosley realised the epic mistake he'd made and tried to exert some semblance of authority on the management of F1, it was too late.

There were many aspects of the sport that did need to be dragged kicking and screaming into the modern world and, for those old enough to know, the era that proceeded Max's under Jean Marie Balestre was worse for F1's governance.

This clip from the Senna movie highlights how Balestre thought the sport should be managed....


It's hard to say where F1 would be today without Max Mosley but part of me is nostalgic for a head of the FIA who actually tried to do something better unlike the guy whose in the role now.... You know the bloke... Little fella, ran a team once, no, not Bernie, what's his name, it's hard to remember as you never see or hear from him. Oh well, R.I.P. Max.
 
I was not going to post on this thread as I do not have much to say. He shall be mourned by his family alone I think.

However.... cider_and_toast makes a very good point above. He was by no means a great thing for F1 but he was better than what came before and was better than what has come after. Begrudging respect given for that.
 
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