Mosley Pressing Ahead with Tyre Plan

FIA president Max Mosley has shown no signs of backing down in his desire to see Formula One move to control tyres, despite recent criticisms by Michelin

Jonathan Noble Sep 19, 2005, 11:47 AM

Although Michelin have threatened to quit the sport at the end of 2006 if plans for a single-tyre manufacturer from 2008 go through, Mosley has made it clear that he is not wavering in his belief that the move would be beneficial for the sport.

Speaking at a press conference in Shanghai on Monday, Mosley claimed that he had justifiable reasons as to why he wanted a single tyre manufacturer in F1.

"Firstly, it's safer because we can keep speeds under control with one tyre maker," AFP quoted him as saying. "Secondly it's cheaper for the competitors as they don't have to buy a lot of tyres and they don't have to do a lot of tyre testing. Thirdly, it's fairer."

Mosley has also rejected criticisms of the FIA's stance towards tendering single-tyre contracts by Michelin's CEO Edouard Michelin, which were made at the recent Belgian Grand Prix.

"The problem is he did not find out what the procedure was before he criticised it," added Mosley. "His criticism was therefore misconceived."