FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem informed Components 1 drivers to give attention to their important jobs and that what occurs throughout the governing physique is “none of their enterprise.”
The drivers have been asking for readability regarding the place the proceeds from their financial fines are spent, with a unprecedented joint assertion from the Grand Prix Drivers Affiliation (GPDA) mentioning they’ve been doing so for 3 years. A scarcity of response to that assertion drew criticism from the drivers in Las Vegas, and after the latest departures of senior steward Tim Mayer and F2 deputy race director Janette Tan, George Russell was once more pissed off in Qatar.
“It should be tremendous difficult for everybody throughout the FIA proper now,” Russell mentioned on Thursday. “We’d like to get a bit of little bit of readability and understanding of what’s occurring and who’s getting fired subsequent.”
Nonetheless, these feedback have obtained brief shrift from Ben Sulayem, who informed Reuters the drivers ought to hold themselves out of FIA affairs.
“Do we’ve got to inform them? When one thing within the groups modifications, do they inform us?” Ben Sulayem mentioned. “We have now the foundations, we observe our guidelines. We don’t observe another person’s rule. Easy as this.
“Will we inform them how one can drive? Will we inform them what to have as their technique? It’s none of their enterprise. Sorry… I’m a driver. I respect the drivers. Allow them to go and focus on what they do greatest, which is race.”
Drivers’ feedback have been put into better focus by a report in The Instances that claims two of the 4 members of the FIA’s audit committee — that scrutinizes the governing physique’s funds — had their companies ended after elevating issues over Ben Sulayem’s plans to offer cash to member golf equipment.
The report alleges Ben Sulayem wished to divert his private FIA entitlement price $1.5 million into a brand new “President’s improvement fund” that might be distributed to golf equipment who will vote when he seeks re-election subsequent 12 months. When chairman of the committee Bertrand Badré and member Tom Purves raised the problem, it’s reported they had been eliminated shortly after.
