The whole Interview
Q: At Monza the teams have specified the role of the FOTA. What do you think about it ?
Mosley: ''I'm very happy with it. The discussions will be more easy from now on. Up till now, when there was something on the agenda, it needed to be discussed with each single team and we never got anywhere. Now, first they'll be discussing amongst them and after that, I think it will allow us (so the teams and the FIA -AFCA) to have a really serious dialogue over it.''
Q: Some people see the FOTA as an opposing force. Is that the way you see it also ?
Mosley: ''An 'opposing force', that gives the impression as if there were a conflict or opposition. But that's not the case. They have simply replaced a completely blurred system by a precise structure. Up till now it was Ecclestone's habit to reunite the teams to have discussions at almost at every GP. Without results. Now it's clear: for everything that revolves around business there's Bernie's FOM, the FOTA represents the teams while the FIA is the 'holder' of the power over the sport. Our triangular lines of communication are clear. And then, if I understood correctly, the rules of unanimity will be simplified. Previously, a unanimous agreement between the teams was necessary when we had to change a regulation sooner than was expected. Apperantly the FOTA is willing to introduce a different system: the teams vote internally and unanimity is considered to be there with 7 votes out of 10.''
Q: Since Briatore is Ecclestone's best mate it's not surprising he is the head of the commercial side of the FOTA, is it ?
Mosley (laughs) : ''On the contrary, I think it won't be easy for Bernie ! They have a good friendship but Briatore is of the opinion Bernie spends too much money. And in that respect Briatore will defend the interests of the team. For example: when we add a new race on the calender he comes out saying: 'All right, it will increase the income but not by as much as what the new GP is going to cost us. So, if you want to organise more races, Bernie, you will have to pay us more money.'''
Q: What are the threats that Formula 1 faces nowadays ?
Mosley: ''On the short term, there's the increasement of the costs in a period in which the world economy is in a recession. Formula 1 is wasting time and money by working on elements of the car which are already known and homologated. Among other things: the engine and the seamless gearbox. In every day life, who cares whether a Formula 1 engine revs at 20,000 or at 22,000 rpm ? As far as the gearbox is concerned, all the cars in the world have one. Even helicopters do. It's necessary to apply the energy and the budgets to useful research. To KERS for example. With the first generation of KERS used in Formula 1, the cars can gain 80 bhp by recovered energy from the brakes. The system will hardly weigh thirty kilo's. You can imagine the prospects for road cars, especially in a town ! It's necessary to review the regulations in order for manufacturers and engineers to get more interested in new technologies, and a little less focussed on the traditional ones.''
Q: What's the cost of a Formula 1 gearbox ?
Mosley: ''The teams, even the small ones, spend in between € 10 and € 15 million each year, on the transmission only. That's madness. The roadcars would benefit a lot more if the same amount of money was spent on KERS.''
Q: But the development costs for KERS are higher than € 15 million. McLaren's development would have already engulfed € 70 million...
Mosley: ''Could be. But that's still inferior to what's being spend on the engine, which has actually been frozen for years ! They still have annual budgets of over € 100 million while it used to be € 250 million in the past. Currently, 'the paddock' roughly spends € 1 billion on engine development each year. We could do the same thing with less than 5 % of that amount of money. Even at Renault, where they're the best when it comes down to saving money, they still have a vast department devoted to the engine. It's irrational.''
Q: Briatore has recently sugested to develop a single KERS for each team...
Mosley: ''This goes to show the incapactity of the teamprinciples to reflect logically. Before thinking of a common KERS, why not think of a common gearbox ? The costs would go down by € 15 million to a maximum of 'only' hundreds of thousands of euro's. I strongly agree with one single KERS, but first: why not have a common engine ? Why not the same suspensions and the same tyres for everyone ? We can no longer justify any research that goes into the tyres ! When they've done all that they can come to talk about a common KERS. There's everything yet to be discovered about this technology, and there the competition is justified. But KERS is disturbing the teams a bit. It's complicated, more so than winning a few thousands with a seamless gearbox. There are teams that have abandoned their own work and have put their faith in Magneti-Marelli or other specialists.''
Q: If Formula 1 really ends up having standard engines, gearboxes, suspensions - the lot, then is the sport still the pinnacle of technology ?
Mosley: ''In the useful technologies, yes. We must encourage engineers to do so. Block all the holes, except the ones where you expect the rabbit to come out of ! We have to change our mentalities.''
Q: What are your intentions for the long term ?
Mosley: ''I myself am in favour of having a single powerplant.''
Q: Do you reckon that a company like BMW, who's image relies on the expertise in this area, would agree with that ?
Mosley: ''I know that the big constructors will say: 'If we are to have a single engine, then I want it to be mine.' But then I respond looking at the 'real world'. If VW could buy cheaper engines at Peugeot, then they would do so without the slightest hesitation: they want the VW badge on it and that's it. They're in rational business. I would like to tell a little story: when I talked about a standard ECU in Formula 1, the teams said: 'Impossible. We cannot accept that !' And then I learned that two big constructors, engaged in Formula 1, were developing a ECU for their roadcars together ! Well at that moment I could no longer listen their arguments. If we hadn't done anything to cut the costs in the past ten years, then today it would have been a desaster.''
Q: Are there other dangers threatening F1 ?
Mosley: ''The public awareness of environmental problems. This is the second danger that hangs above autosport in general. In fact, the new technologies take that into account. And it's urgent to push forward there.''
You can be sure that if this crap is gonna happen, BMW will seriously rethink its strategy, they have been very angry when F1 switched to V8 and even more when engine freeze was adpated and ECU standarized, i am seriously worried about this matter.
