UpdateF1 >> Formula 1 News > Motoring bodies respond to vote

Germans withdraw from FIA

ADAC, the German national motoring organisation, has withdrawn all involvement in the FIA in response to this mornings vote in Paris.

An official statement from the group expressed ‘regret and incomprehension’ with the continued presence at the helm of the FIA of Max Mosley:

“With regret and incomprehension, the ADAC has learned from the decision by the General Assembly of the FIA in Paris to confirm Max Mosley in his function as president of the FIA.

"For Europe's largest motoring club, this is a reason to put down all its functions and the involvement in the global organisation of motoring clubs with immediate effect and to step down from the globally active FIA working groups.

"The ADAC will stick to this attitude as long as Max Mosley will be on duty as president of the FIA.

"After the affair became public on March 30, 2008, the ADAC insistently called upon Mosley in a personal letter to step down in order to avoid any harm being done to the FIA and its institutions. This was done in close co-operation with other major motoring clubs within this global organisation.

"The service portfolio for ADAC members will by no means be affected by the decision now taken. This is being ensured by a closely-knit worldwide network that the ADAC has already established for a long time and that is working very effectively.

"The services will be carried out without any compromises by its own companies as well as by European and global organisations in which the club is participating.

The Dutch group ANWB also voiced dissatisfaction, with their President Guido van Woerkom explaining:

"I voted against. I wrote a letter with 34 other, bigger clubs, to ask Max to step down by at least November 2008, but the outcome is different."

"Well, we've known Max for a long time. He is always pushing the arguments against him away and he is promoting his own arguments."

"And he has a lot of contacts with the smaller clubs and what we have seen in the general assembly is that more or less the smaller clubs are in favour."

"But when you look to the bigger clubs, the AAA (USA), the triple A in Australia, the JAF (Japan) of 70 million members, the ADAC in Germany, the NWB in the Netherlands, they all are against. So when you count the members behind the members then I don't think he will succeed."

The British Motor Sports Association was less committed in its response, saying:

"The Motor Sports Association respects the decision of the FIA General Assembly concerning President Mosley and considers that it is now time to move on and for the sport to pull together.”

"The Motor Sports Association looks forward to continuing to work constructively as an important member of the FIA in the future."

None of the manufacturers involved in F1 has commented on the vote, although we expect a statement in due course.

Written: Tue, 03 Jun 2008 12:28:18