bmer
Tire Trailblazer
By ROB HARRIS
Fri Jul 10, 3:27 pm ET
LONDON – Former World Rally champion Ari Vatanen launched his campaign for the presidency of Formula One's governing body on Friday still believing incumbent Max Mosley may seek a fifth term.
Despite speaking to Mosley before confirming his FIA candidacy, Vatanen is no clearer about whether the 69-year-old Briton will stand for another term.
Mosley announced last month that he would not contest the October election, but has signaled he may reverse that decision as the feud with eight leading teams over 2010 rules continues to simmer.
"Maybe Max is still standing, it's not been excluded at all," Vatanen told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "There's not (been) a decision."
The Formula One Teams Association renewed its threat to create a new series after walking out of a meeting with the FIA on Wednesday.
"That is a very real threat — if the breakaway series would materialize it would be the end of FIA as we know it," said the 57-year-old Vatanen, a four-time winner of the Paris-Dakar Rally. "We mustn't continue down this line because collective damage is too great."
FOTA, including Ferrari and McLaren, were told their entry into the 2010 FIA championship is yet to be confirmed and they would have no say on cost-cutting measures. Vatanen hopes to restore unity to F1 and said "modest conciliation is much better than a big row."
The dispute centers on ensuring the sport's financial sustainability. Mosley had to drop plans for a voluntary $65 million budget cap to prevent a FOTA split, but the rival groups are still at loggerheads over the comprise to reduce costs to 1990s levels.
"There has been far too much time on the battle ground instead of being on the common ground," Vatanen said. "There are far too many quarrels for secondary reasons."
The Finn has yet to announce any concrete policies but believes the time for change has come to motor sport.
"Any federation, any society regardless how good the previous leaders are, they need a new leader and it is to renew people's faith within the organization," he said. "This is not my ego trip ... I'm not going to run a dirty campaign. I want to run a unifying, reconciling campaign."
Vatanen will challenge Mosley for FIA presidency - Yahoo! News
CURRICULUM VITAE - ARI VATANEN
Born on 27 April, 1952 in Tuupovaara, Finland
Married to Rita Vatanen
Children: Kim, Ria, Tua and Max
Lives in France/Finland
I. RALLY CAREER
* World Champion in 1981
* Four-time winner of Paris - Dakar Rally
* Winner of The World Cup of Rally Raids 1997
* 2008 Gregor Grant Award for lifetime achievement in motorsport
II. EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
Member of the European Parliament in 1999-2009
1999-2004 elected in Finland (Coalition Party), and 2004-2009 elected in France (UMP, South-East)
Political Group in the EP: European Peoples' Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats
Committees: Foreign Affairs, Transport and Tourism (2004-2009) and Agriculture and Rural Development, Regional Development (1999-2004)
Particular fields of interest:
* Road and traffic safety
* Transportation logistics and mobility
* Promoting democracy, civil and political rights especially in the area of Former Soviet Union
* Support of Turkey's membership in the EU
* Support of undistorted market economics and vital business life
* Support of efficient and independent energy policy and nuclear energy
* Long-term work on EU-illegal car tax legislation of Finland
III. OTHER PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
* Chairman of Mobility for Prosperity in Europe – a Brussels-based organisation which influences on EU transport policy and demands equal treatment of different modes of transport.
* Member of the Board of trustees of FAS: FIA Foundation for the Automobile and Society – FAS gives grants to projects which either further road safety or try to build a positive image for the road sector.
* Involved in the work of Vaccine Fund – there are still 30 million children who do not vaccinated during their first life year. This causes about 3 million children to die of diseases which are totally preventable.
* Figurehead for the European Road Safety Charter
* Farmer in Southern France
OTHER INFORMATION
National Officer of the Order of Merit (France)
State order of Merits (Ukraine)
