Off topic - never seen that contraction of "dying would" to " dying'd" before. Very creative. I can't even say it. Dammit; beaten by clever use of apostrophies...
I have to disagree with the spin you put on this. Between FIA and FOTA, FOTA have been consistently far more conciliatory.
Companies like Toyota, Ferrari, Renault, Mercedes and McLaren don't just *play* motor sports. The sport is an integral, integrated and fundamental component of their entire business. It is essential to their brand, inseparable and entirely mutually dependent.
You cannot, as Max did, simply order a company like Ferrari to immediately limit their expenditure in F1 to €40m or suffer a regulation-integrated technical disadvantage. The ramifications in regard to brand image and integrity - THE core business of Ferrari - would be so colossal as to be almost incalculable. Ferrari COULD NOT have bent to the will of the FIA without compromising itself. Ferrari and the rest of FOTA were absolutely right to point out that the FIA is a regulatory body in motor sports, NOT a business or financial controller for these manufacturers or their motor sports teams.
FOTA didn't throw their toys out of the pram by announcing their breakaway series. They were literally left with no choice, given Mosley's intransigence. They have FAR bigger considerations than just F1. For the sake of their brands, their stature and their car sales rooms, they were forced down that path.
I think it's important to recognise the importance of the decision that was made and that these are real businesses with hundreds of direct employees, thousands of indirect employees/contractors and hundreds of thousands of car workers around the world. What's more important than getting down to €40m spending, in THIS economic climate, is saving as many jobs as possible.
I can't imagine finding touring car racing interesting. I find it as dull as ditchwater. The only 'tiptop' series that are remotely interesting are the various Ginetta championships, and some club level series.
Probably more about the Technical side. Touring cars are all made to be equal, in F1 you have to earn your right to be with the top teams with cutting edge design.
Unlike say WRC, this has a Real Constructors Championship.
I think if it was anything, it was more a case of FOTA deciding to get out of the FIA baby buggy, but my point is that FOTA weren't behaving like the babies that the cliché implies. They did what they had to do. FIA, though.. best left unsaid.
I'd be more inclined to watch touring cars if the BTCC hadn't obliterated its image by tolerating the atrocious Scott-Speed-like on-track behaviour that it has over the last few years. There are lots of reasons why NASCAR sucks, and Scott Speed just sits like a cherry on top of all those. I'm simply left with the indelible image of something like a cross between monster trucks and the WWF.. and that's all stuff I grew out of before I hit highschool.
F1 has a TEAM championship... Not a constructors championship... Big difference. Ferrari don't get points for having another Ferrari powered car win a GP. Much like Ozzie V8s where Team Vodafone is in the lead. Unlike WTCC where different teams do gain points towards their car manufacturer regardless of which team they drive in.
Yes, that is due to the fact that you have to call yourself a 'constructor' when you sign your team up for F1. Nevertheless it's really a team championship.
I'm waiting for double contractions to become the norm. One of the main uses of contractions is so that you can write spoken word in written text as it was spoken. But what we haven't seen take hold yet is "Shouldn't've". It IS in common spoken usage, but hasn't migrated to written form. Neither has "Should not've", and that's a regular contraction. Instead, the language is getting shagged by people thinking that the what's being said isn't "shouldn't've" but "shouldn't of".. which drives me freakin' nutz.
[edit] The reason "amn't" isn't accepted is because only crazy teens from Canadialand say stuff like that
Mosley rethinks future over FOTA claims
Formula 1's future has been thrown into turmoil once again, with FIA president Max Mosley saying he is now keeping his future options open because of what he has called 'deliberate attempts' by teams to mislead the media.
Bit concerned that the teams are going to hear this from Mosley and think "uhoh.. we can't trust that route enough to depend on it".. and go their own way. I think this is make or break, now.