Mosley defends his ‘eccentric’ lifestyle choice

EMBATTLED motorsport boss Max Mosley has defended his right to an “eccentric” private life and said he would fight to continue running Formula One.

In his first interview since a newspaper printed lurid allegations about him, Mosley admitted the scandal had embarrassed his family.

But he spoke of his pride that “thousands” of lives had been saved on the roads thanks to the work of the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), of which he is president.

Mosley does not dispute the events documented by a British tabloid occurred but he maintains they were private.

He said his wife Jean was “not best pleased” and his sons were “embarrassed” at the revelations.

Speaking of the criticisms he has received, he said: “They’re based on the idea that somehow you can’t have in your life any sort of sexual activity that’s at all eccentric.

“Most people say if somebody likes doing that, if it’s not harming anybody, if it’s in private and it’s completely secret and personal, it’s nothing to do with me.”

Mosley accepted that “a few ex-drivers” had criticised him, but said none of Formula One’s real “opinion formers” had said anything.

He added: “My inclination is to stand and fight.”

Mosley faces a vote of confidence at an extraordinary hearing of the FIA’s general assembly in Paris on June 3.

The 68-year-old is pursuing a claim for breach of privacy against News Group Newspapers, with a five-day trial expected in July. The News of the World is to defend the action.

Mosley has accepted an invitation from the crown prince of Jordan to attend the Jordan Rally this week.