F1 ‘running out of people’ says sacked race steward in rebuke to FIA president | Formula One

The recently sacked FIA race steward Tim Mayer has delivered a stinging rebuke to Formula One’s governing body and the management of its president Mohammed ben Sulayem, with the FIA once again left reeling in the face of very public criticism.

Mayer, a race steward for 15 years, told the BBC in an interview he was sacked by text message on Tuesday and stated Ben Sulayem had involved himself in the decision-making process of the stewards, who are supposed to be independent.

“There are times when he has directly involved himself in making his views known. Not with the stewards directly, but via his staff,” he said, adding that so many personnel were now leaving the organisation they were “literally running out of people to do those jobs”.

Earlier this month, the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association said they were fed up and had lost confidence in the FIA and Ben Sulayem, after receiving no response to their collective criticism of both in a public statement. One of the issues they wanted to discuss was the clampdown in punishing drivers for swearing. Mayer confirmed in the interview this had come directly from Ben Sulayem.

“His view that the drivers need to be penalised for swearing, that is his view and what has happened since reflects that,” Mayer said. “Part of the job of the stewards is to enforce the FIA’s policy on the rules. Technically, bad language is outlawed, so it’s not unfair. Whether it’s sensible we should be chasing drivers for rather mild swearing is another matter.”

The drivers strongly believe this is a waste of their and the FIA’s time and have expressed concern as to how the money used from their fines is spent but that request for transparency has also yet to be addressed.

Since Ben Sulayem took over the FIA in December of 2021, the organisation has been embroiled in repeated controversies and has now overseen a host of senior officials leaving. Alongside Mayer this week, Janette Tan, the deputy Formula 2 race director, also left the FIA. Niels Wittich, the former F1 race director, departed, reportedly sacked, before the Las Vegas GP, as did in the same two-week period, Paoli Basarri, the FIA compliance officer.

In the past 12 months, the chief executive, Natalie Robyn, moved on after 18 months in post, as have the sporting director, Steve Nielsen, the technical director, Tim Goss, and the head of the FIA commission for women, Deborah Mayer.

Mayer expressed his shock at Tan’s departure. “She is the epitome of the type of person we want working for the FIA, the best of the next generation of race directors,” he said. “I don’t know the circumstances, but one would think they would work very hard to keep someone of her character.

“They’re not doing themselves any favours. They are literally running out of people to do those jobs.”

Mayer said he believed he had been sacked because there were “hurt feelings on behalf of the president”. After a track invasion by fans at the US GP had resulted in a fine, Mayer had overseen the right of review against the decision on behalf of the promoters of the race in his position as the sporting organiser of the US GP. He was immediately struck off the FIA stewarding panel under the auspices of there being a conflict of interest with his FIA role, which Mayer strongly denied.

“In spite of the matter being resolved quietly and amicably, he’s [Ben Sulayem] still upset and decided to fire me. After 15 years of volunteering, my time as a steward, a decade teaching other stewards and hundreds of hours volunteering in other roles, I got a text from one of his assistants,” Mayer said.

“There was no intention of trying to cause a problem with the FIA and I will continue as the sporting organiser of the three US grands prix. This was such a minor point that it is baffling that anyone would take such offence.”

The FIA has been contacted for comment.