The F1 season is already in full swing. The first race of the 2024 season was run last weekend, and the second will be gassed up in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, March 9.
At the moment, however, the biggest talking points are not directly related to the competition events. To the team manager of Red Bull to Christian Horner the related conflict and the turmoil within the stable are still gathering rounds.
Now the president of the International Motor Sports Federation (FIA) has stepped up to the plate Mohammed bin Sulayem. The former rally driver from the United Arab Emirates has led the International Federation of Motor Sports until the end of 2021, when he was elected By Jean Todt successor.
Bin Sulayem, 62, is a longtime motorsport boss. Already in 2008, he started as the vice president of the FIA.
Claim 1
Now the FIA ethics committee is investigating the activities of its chairman. First it was reported that the FIA’s internal, anonymous whistleblower had made a report about Bin Sulayem in connection with last year’s Saudi Arabian GP.
At that time, in Saudi Arabia, Aston Martin Fernando Alonso received a 10-second time penalty after the race because he had not served his previous 5-second penalty in the pit according to the rules.
Aston Martin filed a complaint, and three hours after the end of the race, the race jury said they had reversed their decision. Alonso’s 10-second penalty was canceled and the Spanish champion still got to keep his third place in the race.
According to the whistleblower, Bin Sulayem had a hand in the game. He was allegedly called by the sheikh To Abdullah bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, who is the FIA’s vice president for the Middle East and North Africa region. Bin Sulayem allegedly stated in the call that Alonso’s punishment should be overturned.
Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil and energy company, is also the main partner of Aston Martin’s F1 team.
The FIA is investigating whether the chairman really interfered with the race results. The investigation is expected to last four to six weeks.
Claim 2
Then the same whistleblower made another allegation about Bin Sulayem. According to this claim, the FIA boss tried to block the certification of the track of last year’s Vegas GP.
According to the whistleblower, Bin Sulayem would have ordered FIA employees to find a way to prevent driving on the Vegas track citing safety reasons.
The claim can be found in the FIA’s report submitted to its ethics committee. The BBC writes having seen the report. The FIA has confirmed that its internal auditor has received a report containing allegations of wrongdoing. The FIA is also investigating this issue.
According to the claim, Bin Sulayem ordered the track to be searched, artificially if necessary, for some problem that would allow the competition license to be denied. However, officials found no concerns and the course was approved.
The Vegas GP was a huge investment for the F1 series and owner Liberty Media, the importance of which was highlighted for the growth of the sport. Normally, the separate promoters of the games are responsible for the investments, but now Liberty Media and F1 are investing more than 500 million euros in Vegas itself.
The claims that have emerged now differ strongly from what Bin Sulayem stated publicly at the end of last season. At that time, he stated that he supported the approval of the Vegas track, even though its completion was delayed.
– I did it as soon as my team said it was safe. It was a big deal. If I had said no, it would have been catastrophic.
Why?
It is not known why Bin Sulayem would have wanted to prevent the Vegas GP from happening. One possible reason is suspected to be tensions and financial disputes between the FIA and the F1 series.
According to the agreement between the parties, the F1 commercial rights holder pays the FIA approximately 40 million dollars per year. On the execution of F1 legislation.
Bin Sulayem has been the subject of fierce criticism throughout his presidency.
– Everyone thinks that he has to leave. It is definitely a common view, claimed one of the team managers for the BBC anonymously from early 2023.
At that time, among other things, Bin Sulayem’s comments, which were interpreted as misogynistic, came to light, although they were from his old website 20 years ago.
Many other comments by Bin Sulayem have caused irritation in F1 circles. In 2022, for example, he criticized the fact that F1 drivers want to take a stand on social or political issues.
In addition, Bin Sulayem has interfered several times in the commercial and ownership affairs of the F1 series, which has infuriated Liberty Media. For example, Bin Sulayem has questioned the value of 20 billion dollars calculated for the F1 series.
Bin Sulayem has indicated in his comments that the FIA would have a say in the possible sale of the F1 series, although in reality, according to current contracts, the FIA cannot have any commercial stake in F1.
In recent months, several high-ranking persons have resigned from the FIA - including the head of the FIA Women’s Commission Deborah Mayerlawyers Pierre Ketterer and Ed Floyd and sports director Steve Nielsen, who managed to operate in his laundry for less than a year. None of those who divorced have publicly commented on the background of their decision.
Sources: Reuters, BBC, The Guardian