The U.K. Serious Fraud Office is "reviewing material" after it emerged that Formula 1's commercial rightsholder paid the FIA £3.9M ($5.1M) in a payment that "may have breached the Bribery Act," according to Jack de Menezes of the London INDEPENDENT. Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee Chair Damian Collins asked the SFO to investigate the payment that was made to the sport's governing body. The FIA said that the payment was remuneration "for its regulatory role" as the governing body, and confirmed that the payment was not made to any individual. The FIA denies any wrongdoing. Collins brought the matter to the SFO after admitting that he was "very concerned" about the payment, which ITV revealed is "part of the Concorde Agreement" that came into effect in '13 between F1's commercial rightsholders and the FIA. The SFO confirmed that an investigation has been "triggered" and that it is "looking into the allegations" (INDEPENDENT, 4/28).
SINGAPORE SECURE: REUTERS' Alan Baldwin reported F1 "will not miss the Malaysian Grand Prix when it drops off the calendar" after this year's race because neighboring Singapore is "set to stay as the region's showcase," former F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone said. The 86-year-old Briton also said that he "would not be buying Brazil's Interlagos circuit." That track is "due to be sold off by local authorities who had talked up his potential interest when they announced their intentions this month." Asked whether Malaysia's departure was "a blow," Ecclestone shook his head. He said, "No, not at all. We've got Singapore. If we'd have lost Singapore it's not good. But we haven't lost Singapore so it's OK. Ecclestone "hit back" at Sepang Int'l Circuit CEO Razlan Razali, who said last week that Ecclestone had showed a "lack of respect" and made promoters "look like idiots" with comments about charging high hosting fees. Ecclestone: "Nobody made him look stupid, and it's difficult to make people look stupid. If they are, they are" (REUTERS, 4/30).
