Mosley demands speed reduction

The president of the sport's governing body, Max Mosley, is to get tough with Formula 1's teams over his plan to reduce speeds in grand prix racing. He warned on Monday that formal notice is to be given for teams to come up with ways of slowing cars down to improve safety

Speaking after Monday's Formula 1 commission - which includes all the team owners as well as representatives of the governing body, race promoters and sponsors - at a hotel at Heathrow in London, Mosley said the FIA's World Motorsport Council on Wednesday will give teams notice that satisfactory solutions must be presented within the next two months.

"I've told them that I'm going to ask the world council to give formal notice to the technical working group to come up with changes to slow the cars," Mosley told Reuters. "That's the immediate priority, and maybe out of that will come some ideas to make changes. They've then got two months to come up with something sensible."

Mosley is known to be keen on reducing the capacity and number of cylinders of Formula 1 engines, which flies in the face of BMW. The German manufacturer said it was opposed to the suggested 2.4-litre V8 route, and that it might pull-out if new engine rules were forced upon it.

"I think probably it will come down to V8s," said Mosley. "In the end it's a question of whether they [BMW] want to be in Formula 1 or not. I think if the majority go one way, it may be like that."