Malaysia's Ex-Prime Minister enters ‘Lotus’ dispute
The Former Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad has stepped into the ‘Lotus’ team naming controversy. Mahathir is the legal advisor for Proton, the Malaysian automobile manufacturer, and had been the Prime Minister of Malaysia for 22 years, starting
from 1981 until 2003.
As per his advice, Lotus Racing has vowed to carry further negotiations on the matter behind closed doors as the issue has already been highlighted immensely.
The Lotus team’s name issue caught fire after the Singapore Grand Prix where the team principal, Tony Fernandes had announced to carry on with the name “Team Lotus” for the next year as well. Following his announcement, Proton raised their voice saying that
they own the rights of the name and do not allow Fernandes to use it for another year.
Since then, an ever increasing war of words started between Lotus Racing and Proton which has been further spiced up by the media around the globe. To prevent the dispute from further worsening, Lotus Racing announced on Thursday that its deputy team boss,
Dato’ Kamarudin Meranun has had a word with Dr. Mahathir.
Proton owns Group Lotus and provided the license to Tony Fernandes last year for using the title ‘Lotus’ for its team which made its debut in the 2010 season. However, now they have decided to terminate the deal saying that Fernandes would not be allowed
at the bid for the next season's title .
Meanwhile, the Formula One team is adamant to continue with the same title for next season as well, claiming that they have bought the name. Fernandes insisted that they own the rights of ‘Team Lotus’ brand and he is ready to prove it in the court.
Moreover, Lotus Racing remains firm on its decision of using the name for the coming year as it proclaimed that it is “acting within its own rights in planning to run as ‘Team Lotus’ in F1.” However, after having a discussion with the former prime minister,
the team decided not to go vocal on the issue, and instead would try to get it resolved behind closed doors.
The team said in a statement to the media, “This action is upon advice from Tun Dr. Mahathir, and it is out of our respect for him that we will act upon his wishes as he has supported us since our inception, and his backing has been invaluable in our growth.
We are grateful for having had the opportunity to put forth our case and have complete trust that a fair review will be made, and a decision on the matter will be announced in due course.”
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