(BBC) Formula 1’s governing body the FIA is under intense scrutiny in the wake of the controversial end to the 2021 world championship in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.
The handling of the sport’s rules during the safety-car period that ultimately decided the drivers’ title in Max Verstappen’s favour has focused a deeper discontent that already lurked beneath the surface of the sport.
F1 teams and drivers were dismayed by the events at the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, after a season in which many have complained about the consistency of the FIA’s decision making.
Many felt the rules were not followed correctly at Yas Marina, and now a number of F1 insiders believe that changes need to be made at the FIA.
The subject is controversial, so senior figures have not been prepared to speak on the record in the immediate aftermath of the race.
But a number have told BBC Sport that at least half the F1 teams have lost confidence in race director Michael Masi, and that many of the drivers have concerns as well.
Masi is at the centre of the controversy because, as race director, he was the man who made the decisions at the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, and has been involved in other contentious moments through the past year or so.
The key concern is whether Masi correctly followed the FIA’s rules in the operation of the safety car and the restarting of the race for one final shootout lap.
Concern focuses on two areas:
His decision to allow only some of the lapped cars to overtake – the five between Hamilton and Verstappen – and not the others, for example the two between Verstappen and third-placed Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.
The timing of the end of the safety-car period.
But the over-riding concern is that controversial decisions, which seem to many to be contrary to the FIA’s own rules, had a direct influence on the outcome of the championship.
Mercedes’ appeal process aside, it’s important to point out that none of these wider questions within F1 should be seen as being about the specifics of who should and should not be world champion. They are about a concern for fair and equitable competition.
In the context of a year in which consistency of rule application has been a hot topic, Masi’s operational calls in Abu Dhabi, and the stewards’ decision defending them, raise further questions.
Had Abu Dhabi been the first controversial decision of Masi’s tenure, it would have been unfortunate, but unlikely to have led to so many questions about his position.
But in the context of so many over the last two years, some are privately saying that they believe Masi may struggle to survive the fallout of Abu Dhabi.
If he does go, some will certainly not mourn him. But others express regret about the situation, saying that Masi is trying hard to do his best in a difficult job in extremely demanding circumstances, and is not helped by the lack of structure around him.
Some say he is isolated in race control and that adequate support is not available.
He’s too easily accessed by the team principals on the radio, others claim, leading to some of the conversations between him and Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff and Horner in Abu Dhabi as the leaders of the two title-contending teams sought to advance their positions.
The broadcasting of these conversations – a new phenomenon in recent times – has raised further questions as to whether Masi’s decisions are being unduly influenced by teams.
This week, BBC Sport can reveal, the organisation will announce the appointment of Peter Bayer, its secretary general for motorsport, to a newly established position of executive director of F1. In this, he will oversee Masi, Tombazis and technical director Jo Bauer, among other staff.
This is in some ways a reconstitution of the role of the late Charlie Whiting, the FIA’s highly respected former director of F1, who died on the eve of the 2019 season – and who, in Saudi Arabia, Horner said the sport was missing.
Being race director was part of Whiting’s responsibilities, and as a result people have incorrectly assumed that Masi is his replacement. He’s not. Masi was merely appointed to fill one part of Whiting’s remit. The rest of Whiting’s job – keeping the running of F1 by the FIA on an even keel – had not been replaced until now.
The FIA would not comment on whether it was conducting any internal inquiry into the controversy of Abu Dhabi, or whether its running of F1 or the rules themselves have been fit for purpose this year.
But a spokesman did point out that it does not exist to satisfy the F1 teams, and that every decision it makes in the sport is likely to displease someone.
“Our role is to respect the rules and to be impartial and fair and transparent,” he said.
On that, the F1 teams would agree. But not necessarily on whether the FIA has been succeeding.
All this provides the backdrop for the election of a new FIA president on Friday, after the organisation’s annual prize-giving ceremony on Thursday.
The candidates are Englishman Graham Stoker and Emirati Mohammed bin Sulayem. They have been spending the past few months trying to drum up support among the member clubs around the world, and the election is said to be too close to call.
The FIA is responsible for much more than motorsport – as current president Jean Todt and his predecessor Max Mosley proved by expending great energy on trying to improve road safety around the world, with considerable success.
But F1 is the FIA’s poster child. So whoever wins the election will have these issues very much at the top of their in-tray.
