Max Mosley will be missed. Much as he drove teams in Formula One round the bend with his constant meddling and scheming, he gave Formula One discipline where it might have fallen apart. He was the king of intrigue.

It is an oft-repeated refrain that a grand prix on a Sunday afternoon comes almost as an irritating distraction from the main business of the weekend: the scandals, the politics, the in-fighting in which Mr Mosley played a starring role.

Formula One does that sort of thing better than any other sport and there is no doubt that it is part of the attraction for millions of fans. With Mr Mosley gone, it will become a far duller arena.

The leading personalities in Formula One are likely to fight hard to ensure that the sort of unfettered power he wielded will not be repeated. Mr Mosley did many good things for ordinary motorists, with his work on road and car safety, and he introduced many innovations into Formula One — but there was no doubt last night that the overwhelming sensation among the teams was relief that he had gone. Even as the news filtered out, one team principal was still not prepared to believe it. “Only when I see the stake through his heart,” he said.

The post-Mosley world will be a new challenge for everyone in Formula One, not least Bernie Ecclestone, the commercial rights holder, who will have to fend for himself without his old friend alongside him. He joined those calling for Mr Mosley’s resignation last year after disclosures about his private life — something he later said he bitterly regretted — and he took no pleasure in the part he played in Mr Mosley’s demise yesterday.

Mr Ecclestone, at 79, is still fighting fit and relishing the job but Formula One is undergoing a slow changing of the guard and it is not going to be quite as easy for him to get his way as before. The cosy way that he and Mr Mosley used to do business will have gone for good.

In the weeks leading up to the dramatic events of yesterday there was much debate in the paddock about who was the more powerful, Mr Ecclestone or Mr Mosley. What is now clear for anyone to see is that Mr Ecclestone, who runs the business and controls the money, remains the key powerbroker. He may be weakened by Mr Mosley’s departure but he will not relinquish a role to which he has devoted his working life.