SUMMARY
- FIA in trouble after recent events concernign Toto Wolff and Steve Nielsen.
- Rumors suggest that F1 are having talks on whether to part ways from the FIA.
In the last couple of weeks, the FIA has come under their microscope after the recent events. Ever since Mohammed Ben Sulayem was elected as president, there have been a number of controversial decisions taken by the governing body concerning Formula 1.
It all started when the FIA launched a baseless investigation on Toto Wolff and his wife, Susie Wolff. Later, Steve Nielsen who joined the FIA in January 2023, left before even completing a year. Nielsen’s move to the FIA was anonymously supported by all the F1 teams and drivers. It was reported that Nielsen left the FIA because they were not willing to make certain changes for smoother operations. This has left F1 to wonder if they are actually better off without the FIA. But let’s take a look at what the FIA actually does for Formula 1.
What does the FIA do for Formula 1?
The FIA is the governing body for a number of motorsport series. While F1 is just one of them, it is one of the most popular sports in the world and does bring in a large chunk of their revenue. As it turns out, the FIA plays a very important role for F1.
The FIA is in charge of creating and modifying the rules and regulations for F1 every year. While Formula 1 owners, Liberty Media do have some direction they want the sport to go in, the FIA is responsible for making those changes happen. For example, F1 is looking to make the sport more entertaining by making it easier to overtake. So F1 will be working with the FIA to make certain technical changes to make it easier for the drivers to follow the cars in front.
BBC reporter Andrew Benson says “a number of sources” said that Formula 1 could “consider breaking away from the FIA” if FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem continued to act in “detrimental” way.#F1 https://t.co/QmHqPH3iuY
— Mercedes F1 News – SilverArrows.Net (@SilverArrowsNet) December 7, 2023
During every race weekend, the FIA is in charge of the operations that go on during a race. The FIA has made sure that the race goes ahead as planned. This is the job of the FIA race director. If a director sees an incident that needs to be investigated, he sends the incident up to the stewards who are also a part of the FIA. They will judge the incident and hand out penalties if required.
It is safe to say that F1 is completely dependent on the FIA in a number of aspects. If F1 owners decide to part ways with the FIA, they will have a huge task ahead as they will have to manage a number of additional aspects. Going through such a change could cost the sport. This is an unnecessary risk as the sport is doing really well at the moment.
What can the FIA do to satisfy F1?
Parting ways with the FIA may not be the answer for Formula 1. However, if things get out of control for the FIA, there is a chance that F1 will go their separate way. But there is something the FIA can do to stop this from happening.
If things get out of control for the FIA, it will be a good move for them to change their leadership. Mohammed Ben Sulayem may not been very liked by the majority of the F1 teams and drivers. So a change in leadership should help satisfy the teams and drivers. If the teams and drivers are satisfied, so will the owners of F1. Liberty Media has already lined up a few possible replacements for Sulayem.
⚠️ | Mercedes could seek compensation from the FIA for the reputational damage its actions have inflicted on the company this week.
Senior F1 figures are also questioning the judgement of FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem.
[@andrewbensonf1] #F1 pic.twitter.com/V8uVq69nol
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) December 7, 2023
It will be interesting to see how the FIA and F1 react to the situation in the next few weeks. If the sport decides to part ways with the FIA, it will face a new challenge. If the FIA decides to change the leadership, it could affect other sports apart from F1.
In order for the FIA to remove the sitting president, there needs to be some real misconduct. If Mohammed is found to be behind the investigation on the Wolff family, there will be a good chance that it could be the end for Sulayem.