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Ecclestone Attacks Todt, Says FIA Is a Joke

Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has to have the last word in everything, and that's hardly a secret for any long-time fan of the sport. So it shouldn't come as a surprise to anybody that the 80-year old has set off a war of words with FIA president Jean Todt, based on the latter's recent comments regarding F1's need to focus on going green.

After admitting he is not at all enthused with the new 1.6 liter 4-cylinder turbo engine to be introduced in F1 in 2013, Ecclestone was answered by Todt earlier this week. Asked about the F1 boss' comments, the Frenchman said: “I hear about the (engine) noise, but that's evolution” - reference to claims that the new engine will not have the same sound as the current V8s.

Interestingly enough though, Ecclestone's “counterattack” did not refer to the same “F1 goes green” case, but was rather personal. In an interview with UK newspaper Express, the F1 chief executive first referred to Todt as a “poor man's Max”, an indication that the Frenchman is not at all comparable with former FIA president and good friend of Ecclestone, Max Mosley.

He (Todt) has been traveling around the world doing what Max didn't do too much – kissing the babies and shaking the hands,” added Ecclestone, who continued by arguing Todt has “not so much had a positive effect on Formula 1.” Finally, returning to the “greener F1” issue, the Englishman slammed Todt's efforts as being “a complete joke”.

Funnily enough, he used the opportunity to also lobby for his own ideas in the series. As he's not at all happy with the introduction of KERS and the highly controversial adjustable rear wing, he believes artificial rain and medals instead of points would better serve the sport in terms of show and entertainment.

We should write the rules with the teams,” he said, showing a sudden closeness to the F1 teams. “The competitors have got to race and have got a big investment. We have got a big investment. It (the FIA) should be like the police – the police don't write the rules and say you've got to do 30 miles an hour. The FIA is a joke.”
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