Mosley takes flak for poll role

The action here in Suzuka yesterday was a damp squib thanks to rain in both practice sessions, but elsewhere the FIA presidential election heated up as Jordan's influential Prince Feisal criticised the outgoing president Max Mosley's overt and aggressive support of candidate Jean Todt.

In a letter declining an invitation to speak at the Amman Extraordinary Motoring Conference conference, Mosley attacked the rival candidate Ari Vatanen. ''It is very unfortunate, but the campaign run by Ari Vatanen has been marked by untruthful claims and has now descended to insults such as his recent statements that the FIA is a 'stagnant pool' which stinks and that the entire FIA system is unfair, autocratic and unjust,'' Mosley wrote.

''The simple fact is that Vatanen will lose the election and lose badly, not least because he chose to denigrate the FIA and those currently in office."

Feisal responded: "Voting should be done with your hearts and conscience, and not out of fear and intimidation.''

On the track, Lewis Hamilton – whose McLaren team-mate Heikki Kovalainen set the fastest time – said after his first experience of the dramatic figure-of-eight circuit: "This is the best track I've ever driven."