Apr 28, 2008

Formula One Leader in Sex Scandal

Oh, how I love Formula One! Just when it appears that NASCAR had taken over the Can-you-believe-it? sweepstakes with the revelation that Aaron Fike raced in NASCAR events while under the influence of heroin, F1 one-ups them with the revelation that Max Mosley, president of F1 sanctioning body FIA, took part in what a British newspaper described as a “Nazi-style orgy in a torture dungeon.”  Now there’s an idea!

Mosley, who numbers among his duties the enforcement of Formula One rules and regulations, denied that the orgy had any Nazi connotations while tacitly admitting that he did participate in what might better be described as a “bondage-and-discipline-style orgy in a torture dungeon.” Apparently, Nazi connotations are taboo, but the run-of-the-mill F1 race fan finds nothing objectionable about orgies in torture chambers as long as there is no relationship to Nazis. 

Mosley is a bit suspect on the Nazi front since his dear old dad, Oswald, was head of the British Union of Fascists. But Mosley, who seems intent on trying to keep his job, was adamant in his denial that the orgy had anything to do with Adolph Hitler, swastikas or an attempt to create a Fourth Reich. Whether he wore a black shirt to the orgy (or anything at all, for that matter) is, up to now, undocumented.

This might be the final straw for Mosley, who is not much beloved by the power brokers in Formula One anyway. Even Bernie Ecclestone, the my-way-or-the-highway kingpin of F1, was not deaf to the criticism Mosley has been getting. He advised his president to stay away from the recent Grand Prix in Bahrain, apparently concerned that the royal family of that country might object to his presence. Mosley has held his current job since 1993, and his current term doesn’t expire until 2009, but he will be called on the carpet to explain his actions in a special session of the FIA on June 3. We wonder if his defense will include a PowerPoint presentation of the orgy highlights.