Fuel bid dropped
By TMX Archives on 13th Apr 12
Without a whisper to anyone bar the team technical chiefs the controversial attempt to introduce worldwide fuel standards has been dropped and the decision came as far back as November last year.
FIM Technical Coordinator, Charles Hennekam, was in Valkenswaard to speak to the teams and admitted: "GP racing will be run in 2012 to the EN228 standard, but US race fuel is legal in World SX.”
Ironically the reversal of the move to introduce expensive fuels did not come about as a much-welcomed cost-saving factor, but for fear of prosecution by the European Union!
"When we analysed US race fuel we discovered that the lead content was not only over 50 times higher than the FIM regulations, it also exceeded EU Law by that factor and its use would have been illegal in Europe.
"The new guideline on fuel is that what the teams use must be readily available on the market.
"We are asking the teams to provide us with samples of the fuel they are using to establish a reference, and then we can test post-race at random.
"With just a very small sample we are able to quickly establish by gas chromatography tests if they are using what they say they are.”
