F1 wounds too deep to heal, warns Stoddart

Minardi boss Paul Stoddart warned that Formula One risked being ripped apart after he and the sport's governing body waged a war of words yesterday at the season-opening Australian GP.

"As far as I am concerned what we are doing here is rapidly pushing the Formula One world championship to its destruction," the Australian said after a day of accusations and counter-claims.

"The wounds are getting so deep now there is not going to be any healing," he told Reuters.

Sporting politics hung heavily over the event, despite Stoddart dropping legal action against the FIA that would have allowed him to qualify with cars that did not conform to the regulations.

Minardi modified their cars overnight, a move that had many asking why they had not done so earlier, and competed according to the rules.

The fragile peace was broken when the FIA called into doubt the future of world championship motor sport in Australia as a result of Stoddart's use of the Victoria Court to obtain an injunction.

Stoddart replied by claiming that he had been forced to climb down by a threat to cancel today's race made by the FIA's lawyers at a midnight meeting on Friday.