Formula One drivers have united to demand the FIA treats them like adults – and they’ve found support in the most unlikely of sources.
The Grand Prix Drivers’ Association (GPDA), which represents F1 stars, further escalated a swearing row which has festered for months.
British motorsport legend Johnny Herbert was one of four stewards on duty for the FIA at the Singapore Grand Prix in September.
As a result, Herbert, who replaced Jos Verstappen as Michael Schumacher’s teammate at Benetton, helped pass judgement in a case over his son Max
Three-time world champion Verstappen was caught swearing when describing Red Bull’s performance following the Azerbaijan GP.
F1’s governing body, the FIA, ordered him to perform ‘work of public interest’ – a punishment slammed by other F1 drivers.
Verstappen, who was also fined was fined €40,000 ($44,556, £33k) retaliated by offering only basic responses in his next press conference.
He then held an impromptu non-televised Q&A session with F1 journalists outside in the paddock so that only the FIA, who had broadcast his one-word responses, would feel the effects of his vow of silence.
However, it failed to stop the FIA from punishing Charles Leclerc for accidentally swearing at a press conference last week.
The Ferrari driver was fined €10,000 (£8,420), half of which is suspended on good behaviour for the next 12 months.
The GPDA, which represents Verstappen, Leclerc, Lando Norris, and the rest, has now issued a united statement against the treatment.
A letter signed by F1 drivers also criticised FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem for his ‘tone and language’ when addressing the topic.
GPDA statement regarding ‘driver misconduct’
“As is the case with every sport, competitors must abide by the referee’s decision, whether they like it or not, indeed whether they agree with it or not.
“That is how sport works. The drivers (our members) are no different, and fully understand that.
“Our members are professional drivers, racing in Formula 1, the pinnacle of international motorsport. They are the gladiators and every racing weekend they put on a great show for the fans.”
“With regards to swearing, there is a difference between swearing intended to insult others and more casual swearing, such as you might use to describe bad weather, or indeed an inanimate object such as a Formula 1 car, or a driving situation.
“We urge the FIA president to also consider his own tone and language when talking to our member drivers, or indeed about them, whether in a public forum or otherwise. Further, our members are adults, they do not need to be given instructions via the media, about matters as trivial as the wearing of jewellery and underpants.
“The GPDA has, on countless occasions, expressed its view that driver monetary fines are not appropriate for our sport. For the past three years, we have called upon the FIA president to share the details and strategy regarding how the FIA’s financial fines are allocated and where the funds are spent. We have also relayed our concerns about the negative image financial fines bring to the sport. We once again request that the FIA president provides financial transparency and direct, open dialogue with us. All stakeholders (FIA, FI, the teams and the GPDA) should jointly determine how and where the money is spent for the benefit of our sport.
“The GPDA wishes to collaborate in a constructive way with all the stakeholders, including the FIA president, in order to promote our great sport for the benefit of everyone who works in it, pays for it, watches it, and indeed loves it. We are playing our part.”
Best regards,
The Directors and Chairman of the GPDA on behalf of the Grand Prix Drivers
#RacingUnited for our Safety, our Sport, our Fans.
It read: “There is a difference between swearing intended to insult others and more casual swearing, such as you might use to describe bad weather, or indeed an inanimate object such as an F1 car, or a driving situation.
“We urge the FIA president to consider his own tone and language when talking to our member drivers, or indeed about them, whether in a public forum or otherwise.
“Further, our members are adults. They do not need to be given instructions by the media about matters as trivial as the wearing of jewellery or underpants.”
The latter reference is to the period of a jewellery ban that had Lewis Hamilton at the centre of the debate.
The seven-time world champion had a long-running standoff with the FIA over the permitting of wedding rings but not other types of jewellery such as his iconic nose stud – which eventually, he received a medical exemption for.
A new study by AskGamblers found that F1 drivers have been fined over £300,000 this season alone following the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The drivers have now called for clarity over how the FIA uses that money, adding: “The GPDA has, on countless occasions, expressed its view that driver monetary fines are not appropriate for our sport.
“For the past three years, we have called upon the FIA president to share the details and strategy regarding how the FIA’s financial fines are allocated and where the funds are spent.
“We have also relayed our concerns about the negative image financial fines bring to the sport. We once again request that the FIA president provides financial transparency and direct, open dialogue with us. All stakeholders (FIA, F1, the teams and the GPDA) should jointly determine how and where the money is spent for the benefit of our sport.”
The latest swearing debate, which first arose from a decision spearheaded by F1 legend Johnny Herbert, has now sparked a degree of solidarity from the FIA steward.
During an exclusive interview with talkSPORT.com last month, before the release of the GPDA letter, Herbert likened Verstappen’s personal FIA protest antics to the great characters of the sport.
Herbert told talkSPORT: “Characters are very important in all sports. They’re definitely important in Formula One. And I have to say, I think we’ve got a good bunch, actually, who’ve got a nice sense of humour.
“They seem to be quite a close group of drivers, which I haven’t seen this close for quite a long time, to be honest, but the rebellious streak, I think, has always been part of it.
“When you see Ayrton [Senna] and [former FIA President Jean-Marie] Baleste in the ‘Senna’ film’, you see it in the movie once, but it happened every single race weekend that we had.
“So those characters have always been there. Michael [Schumacher] another character, Mika [Hakkinen] as well, Sebastian [Vettel], the list goes on.
“So different types of characters are always an important part of it. And what we saw with Max is something, I understand it.
“I think, you know, this is like anything – could it have been dealt with in a slightly different way? Possibly, there is this code which says, you know, you’re not allowed to swear, especially when it comes down to that press conference.
“And then, of course, then he did his little [impromptu press conference] which was very classic Max, sort of, you know, pushing back against the the FIA itself.
“But that’s good because I think it just brings in and keeps his character going. I know there was a lot of talk about, well, because if we stop drivers speaking their minds, they can become robots, and when you do an interview, they’re not going to be able to talk. But I think that’s totally true.
“I don’t think you know, whenever I see the press conferences, how many, how many swear in that press conference, which is spread across the world with all different age groups that come into it, and it’s something that everybody’s very aware of what those words mean.”
In July, F1 team bosses were instructed to tell their drivers to stop swearing on their radios after Verstappen’s X-rated outburst at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
However, Herbert told talkSPORT: “You can’t stop it in a car.
“I’ve sworn when I’ve been in a car, on the radio, talking to my engineer, whatever, that’s the passion that sort of explodes when you’re in the car when things aren’t quite working out.
“Can’t stop that, don’t want to stop that, and we shouldn’t stop that. But I think what we saw with the drivers again, coming together. I think was a good thing.
“And I think it’s something that only draws the interest from around the world, from the different generations that we’ve got, the young generation coming into it. And it’s good.
“Max, I have to say, is damn exciting when he’s on the track. I thoroughly enjoy watching him when he’s driving.
“But there are those, just those little things like that, what happened in Singapore, which is something that you’ll want to see a little bit less of sometimes, but we want to see it when they’re in the car.”
This interview with Johnny Herbert was conducted via Genting Casino where fans have the chance to win a VIP experience for the Abu Dhabi GP. Please click here for more details.
