Toyota launch: Mosley pays tribute to “historic day”

The president of the sport's governing body, the FIA's Max Mosley, says the launch of Toyota's Formula 1 challenge at Paul Ricard today "will go down in motorsport history"

Mosley said he hasn't been as excited about a launch of a new car since his own March team unveiled its first F1 challenger in 1970. He attended the launch today (Friday) along with Bernie Ecclestone, whose SLEC family trust has been conditionally awarded a 100-year extension to its Formula 1 TV and commerical rights deal by the FIA.

"This is a really important day that will go down in motorsport history," said Mosley. "It's an extraordinary statement of technological self-confidence from a major manufacturer.

"It shows the value of Formula 1 and, in a sense, it's an enormous compliment that Toyota decided to take this on. I think they will reach their target of qualifying for the first race and then we'll see rapid progress from there," he added.

Akihiko Saito, the senior managing director of Toyota Motor Corporation, said of the project: "It's a huge undertaking to fully prepare for Formula 1 but we believe the rewards are well worth it."