(Motorsport-Total.com) – FIA President Mohammed bin Sulayem has commented on the criticism of the race stewards, who came into focus after the Formula 1 race in Zandvoort. The stewards had given Franco Colapinto and Arvid Lindblad drive-through penalties for overtaking under yellow flags after Max Verstappen had crashed.
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Especially from Colapinto’s camp, there was a lot of criticism – and not only from the often overly emotional fans. A representative of sponsor Mercado Libre also spoke out publicly, accusing the FIA of “destroying the integrity of Formula 1”.
When asked about the topic during a visit to Argentina, Sulayem emphasized that the FIA and its stewards do not fundamentally decide against Argentina and that the accusations also come from other camps: “I will look into it because I have also heard from others who think they are against them,” he said.
“They also believe the FIA is against the British, but we are not against them,” he clarified. “But you know, sometimes it is good to question the race stewards and keep telling them: Always be fair. You can be tough, but you must be fair.”
Sulayem emphasizes: “Fairness is the FIA’s mission. But we will check and see. And I will talk to him (Colapinto; editor’s note). I will call Franco myself. I want to hear what he has to say.”
When asked if the FIA could nominate more South American stewards in the future, the FIA President replied: “We are currently conducting training. We even called for a training course. We have asked the national associations to give us names that we can train, as we want to rotate the race stewards.”
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Sulayem condemns online hate
At the same time, the FIA President condemns the hate that was spread on social media after the race: “The hate affects the drivers, the journalists, the officials, many of us. And two or two and a half years ago I said: If I do nothing about it, our sport will be irreparably damaged. Then it’s over.”
“I remember two years ago in Miami when we had a problem. One of our race stewards was a lady from Spain. She and her family were threatened with death, and she sent a letter saying: ‘Enough, I won’t do this anymore.’ That’s when we launched this alliance against hate on the internet,” he recounts. “Governments, associations, media – all together.”
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“And now the momentum is picking up. The teams are joining in. This is a marathon. I can’t do it alone. The FIA can’t do it alone. It’s an effort by everyone.”
He also refers to a study showing that the majority of online hate comes from North and South America, but emphasizes that the problem goes far beyond motorsport: “Seventy percent of the attacks came from the two Americas. The rest basically comes from Europe, maybe 18 percent or so.”
“So only twelve or ten percent come from the rest of the world. And that concerns all sports, not just motorsport.”
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