The limbo following the de-registration of the Automobile Association of Malaysia (AAM) as the governing body for motorsports in the country looks set to end, with the Motorsport Association of Malaysia (MAM) expected to be officially appointed as the national motorsport authority, or ASN, in the future.

Ahead of that move, MAM released a statement saying that the Federation Internationale de L’Automobile (FIA) has decided to provisionally delegate the duties from AAM to it as per Articles 5.2 and 16.3 of the FIA statutes.

In the FIA statement dated June 18, FIA secretary-general for motorsport Peter Bayer hoped that MAM would take “all the necessary steps to allow a favorable exercise of sporting power” in Malaysia. “Any further developments on this subject will be submitted to the members of the World Motor Sport Council at its next meeting in October,” he added.

According to MAM president Tan Sri Mokhzani Mahathir, the association will do its best to make sure that Malaysian motorsports will get their best from it. “Our main priority is to ensure that motorsports in Malaysia continues uninterruptedly at both national and international level. It is vital that Malaysian motorsports have a working body to run its activities and also support the development and growth – including sanctioning events related to motorsports,” he said.

The office of the sports commissioner (PJS) had in November last year de-registered AAM as the national motorsports authority for failing to comply with various administrative regulations – AAM, meanwhile, said that the move was not carried out in a fair manner, without the benefit of a suspension period.

The removal of AAM as the ASN without an official – and sanctioned – replacement in place resulted in confusion earlier this year, with questions being raised from the motorsports fraternity as to the validity of AAM-issued racing licences and the legality of racing in the country without an ASN in place. At the end of March, the PJS stepped in and said that a special temporary committee would be formed to take over the functions of the AAM.

In its previous capacity as the recognised motorsports sanctioning body in Malaysia, AAM has been responsible for, among other things, the issuance of race driver licences and insurance for motorsports events in its capacity as the ASN.

The provisional delegation of ASN duties to MAM may be a first step towards resolution, but many issues still need to be addressed, with organisers, officials and racing license holders continuing to seek clarity during this transition period. For example, will licence holders be able to utilise existing AAM-issued licences, or will there be a need for new ones issued by MAM?

Also, there has been no green-light from the Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) with regards to the matter, so do the AAM-issued racing licences for motorcycles remain valid for use? Given the ambiguity still at large, official statements from all parties with regards to this is much needed.