Mosley says Formula One needs him

Embattled motor racing chief Max Mosley has urged FIA club presidents to let him stay at the helm of Formula One's governing body until October next year in the interest of the sport.

Details were published on Friday of a letter from the International Automobile Federation (FIA) president, who is fighting to keep his job after a lurid sex scandal.

"I think it essential that there should be a smooth transition. If we are to have that we need to wait to 2009," the Briton wrote to the club presidents.

The 68-year-old has said already that he will not seek re-election if he survives a confidence vote by secret ballot of the FIA assembly in Paris next month.

Mosley, who has ignored numerous calls to resign, argued that it would be "irresponsible, even a breach of duty, to walk away from a number of negotiations currently under way, all of which are of fundamental importance to the FIA."

The areas of concern included the FIA's 100-year agreement with Formula One's commercial rights holder and negotiations for the commercial rights to the world rally championship.

Mosley said that rights holders CVC and Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One group wanted the right "to control F1 regulations and be allowed to sell the business to anyone" and the FIA should resist such demands.

"I do not believe we should concede," said Mosley, who warned also that Formula One was facing an imminent major financial crisis that needed to be dealt with.

He suggested that there had been a deliberate attempt to destabilise the governing body at "a crucial time in its history."

"It must be the FIA, not the commercial rights holder or the teams which decides the regulations," he said.

Mosley said that if he were allowed to continue, he would leave "almost all public representation of the FIA to the two deputy presidents".

The 68-year-old has not attended a Formula One race yet this season, with Bahrain's royal family making clear that his presence at that grand prix last month was unwelcome.

Mosley, who lives in Monaco, will be present at next week's race in that principality without attending official functions.

The FIA and organisers denied that he had been sidelined to prevent embarrassing public meetings between him and Prince Albert II.

The Times newspaper said Mosley's decision to allow vice-president Marco Piccinini to represent the FIA nonetheless "underlines the awkward reality of Mosley's position and that it is now almost impossible for him to carry out his public duties".

However the Automobile Club de Monaco (ACM) said in a statement that the decision had been taken some time ago.

"Mr Mosley will be in attendance throughout the event in the normal way in his capacity as FIA President and any suggestion to the contrary is entirely erroneous," it added.

Mosley's position has looked precarious since British Sunday tabloid the News of the World published details and photographs in March of him taking part in what it said was a Nazi-style sado-masochistic orgy with five prostitutes.

Mosley, whose father Oswald founded the pre-World War Two British Union of Fascists, has denied any Nazi connotations and is suing the paper for unlimited damages for breach of privacy.