Jun.8 (GMM) Just before the pitlane opened on Sunday afternoon, wild rumours swept the Istanbul paddock suggesting that the eight FOTA teams were preparing to boycott the Turkish grand prix
With five days still to go before the FIA’s entry list publication on June 12, the action’s timing would have been odd, but pre-race fears were nonetheless real that non-members Williams and Force India would be the only cars contesting victory
Ultimately, the boycott did not happen, but the question remains; from whence did the rumour spring?nnThe speculation began doing the rounds following the drivers’ meeting with FOTA officials in the Toyota motor home, attended also by BMW’s Mario Theissen
The German was asked on Sunday afternoon if the boycott threat was real, and he answered: “I don’t think so.”nnAfter the race, the podium ceremony condemned the story to the pages of history, but the question marks about the rumours remained. “I believe it was a joke, but I don’t know where it came from,” Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali told Germany’s motorsport-magazin.com
The Italian said the threat was “not discussed” in the Sunday FOTA meeting
Meanwhile, it is believed that FOTA has left open the possibility of a meeting this week, before the entry list publication date, with FIA president Max Mosley
