It never happened ...

A rival series on the streets of Monaco

THE RUMOUR
On 22 May last year Italian newspaper La Stampa reported that Automobile Club de Monaco (ACM) president Michel Boeri would probably not apply for an extension to host the Monaco Grand Prix beyond 2010 if Ferrari left F1.

HOW IT STARTED
Last year Ferrari led a battle between seven other FOTA teams and the FIA over the federation’s introduction of a $60m budget cap. It initially looked like just another of the many rows littering F1’s twisting landscape., but that all changed on 12 May when Ferrari threatened to quit in 2010 unless the cap was withdrawn. The team believed that it had a veto over new regulations and it put its money where its mouth is by taking legal action against the FIA. It lost the case, but got the ACM’s support two days later.

THE REALITY
On 24 June FOTA dropped its breakaway plans as the then- FIA president Max Mosley agreed to stand down. Given the ACM’s poor track record in taking on F1’s establishment (see cover story) it seems unlikely that the ACM would have ditched F1 even if the rival series had got off the grid.

WHAT IF IT HAD HAPPENED
Monaco is so synonymous with F1 that any rival series would get a gigantic boost by snatching away the race through the principality. It would give the series the same kind of global attention which could only otherwise be achieved by signing Ferrari. The combination of these renowned brands could well have put the brakes on F1.