Hell of a way to start a Monday morning if you’re Max Mosley - finding out that you’re the subject of a sex scandal involving Nazi-themed escapades and several professional ‘ladies.’ Not exactly how the President of the FIA probably expected his week to start.

Of the legions of public figures who one might think of when discussing sex scandals, Max is not at the top of my list. Still, the UK based tabloid, News of the World is claiming just such a thing and they seem to have photographic proof. Stills of the event can be found on their website for those with inquiring minds.

There are serious consequences if this story has any legs to it and there are three things that will make surviving this situation even more difficult for Mosley: Nazis, political enemies and the FIA anti-racism campaign.

First, Max is the son of Oswald Mosley, the leader of the British Fascist Union before World War 2. Given this, he should know that not only is dressing up as a Nazi and humiliating women ‘prisoners’ in grossly poor taste, it’s going to bring his family past straight to the forefront. The perception will be that, “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” or something to that effect. Mosley has already stated that his family’s political past has prevented him from entering British politics. Surely he would know to steer clear of anything that could be associated with it.

Second, like any politician good at his game, Mosley has enemies aplenty. Present and former team owners, national sporting (ASN) presidents and European Union politicians all come to mind. They can all smell the blood in the water from a wounded political foe and will start circling for the kill. The demands for Max’s resignation will start within weeks, if not days, and they will be joined by others who will simply take advantage of a political opportunity. With reelection in October, Mosley is especially vulnerable.

Finally, Mosley’s own over-zealous reaction to racist behavior in Spain against McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton will certainly come back to haunt him. How hypocritical - The FIA President threatens Spain with the loss of one or both of it’s races because of racism from fans at the tracks and then he allegedly dons a Nazi uniform for a sexual romp with prostitutes masquerading as concentration camp prisoners. If true, the audacity is unbelievable!

The coming days and weeks will prove interesting for those who delight in watching a politician in survival mode. Mosley has an uphill struggle and he has shackled himself with imagery that is not easily forgivable. Should he survive, it might well be his biggest political achievement which is a shame given some of the good work he has done in the areas of road and racing safety.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!