For Formula 1 to thrive, there must be a harmonious and seamless relationship between those high up in the sport and its governing body, the FIA.
Unfortunately, comments made by FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem have caused this relationship to become tense, with the 61-year-old overstepping the mark on a number of occasions.
Firstly, Ben Sulayem took to Twitter to announce that the FIA were looking into the possibility of expanding the current grid in the wake of the Andretti-Cadillac project’s announcement.
The expansion of the grid is something that has already been shut down by F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, meaning Ben Sulayem’s comments were not well received.
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To make matters worse, the FIA president then took to Twitter to openly question Saudi Arabia’s $20bn bid to take over Formula 1 from Liberty Media, claiming that this price tag is inflated.
As president of the FIA, Ben Sulayem should not be commenting on the financial aspect of the sport and Liberty Media have penned and angry letter to the FIA, claiming that he will be responsible for any drop in value of F1 following his overstep.
Despite rumours that Liberty Media and others high up in F1 are trying to get the FIA president sacked from his role, there have reportedly been conversations between F1 and the FIA to patch things up.
However, while Sky Sports have reported that while the conversations are going well, some high-ranking individuals in the paddock remain unhappy with Mohammed Ben Sulayem’s management style.
“No reply has come from the FIA to F1[‘s letter],” said reported Craig Slater.
“But I can also say that positive conversations continue between the two institutions. So they’re functioning normally as they need to do to keep the sport operating properly.
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“But people [are] still telling me that they have issues with the kind of personal style of leadership that Mohammed Ben Sulayem has at the FIA and these are high-ranking individuals from a number of different F1 team.”
Sexist comments have recently resurfaced that were made by Mohammed Ben Sulayem over 20 years ago on his website, putting the FIA president under pressure to keep his job.
While the FIA have defended their president, the 61-year-old is yet to comment on these sexist remarks.