The last grand prix of last season sparked off a war between supporters and detractors of Michael Masi , who was then the FIA’s race director in Formula 1. The Australian was in charge of managing the decisions in the tests of the Great Circus after the tragic passing of Charlie Withing , and 2021 was their litmus test.
The battle between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton turned out to be most controversial due to their recurring clashes, but the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix took all the covers when the world championship was decided on the last lap.
Michael Masi indicated that only a few single-seaters, those between the British and the Dutch, would split, leaving the Red Bull free to attack with fresh tires, while the rest of the cars had to stay behind despite de should also have recovered the lost turn.
Mercedes protested to the sporting tribunal for this and soon after retracted its appeal, although the FIA, after investigations, said the race director acted “in good faith” in the case.
The international federation announced Masi’s dismissal before the start of the 2022 season, appointing Niels Wittich and Eduardo Freitas to his position on a shared basis. However, the president of the FIA, Mohammed Ben Sulayem , does not rule out the return of the Australian.
“I didn’t get rid of Michael [Masi]. He had a lot of workload as a safety delegate and race director,” said the Emirati. “He made a mistake, we didn’t get rid of him, I haven’t said Masi is done with the FIA.
“I don’t do stuff like that,” Sulayem continued of an irreversible dismissal of Masi. “I even hug the people who don’t vote for me, we don’t think of the people separately, but of the organization.”
“I don’t know Michael very well, the Motor Council made the decision, it was a human error that he made,” said the head of the governing motorsport federation.
“I spoke with him two days ago, I have no personal problems with him, I don’t hate anyone. Michael is here and we can evaluate him, I didn’t say we were going to get rid of him, we can consider it, we are open to anything,” explained the Emirati.
“Our race management organization chart was organizationally incorrect,” he continued. “Even though we’ve brought in two new directors, I can’t say we’ve done well yet.”
“It’s not like going to a supermarket and looking for a referee, you need people who are firm, fair and patient. We need a recruitment process, human error cannot be identified with the FIA, but I would like to see at least three directors race early next year,” said the head of the governing federation of motorsports.
