Drama Surrounding F1 Plays More Like a Made for TV Reality Show
First to was Christian Horner.
Then it was Christian Horner vs Jos Verstappen.
Now the narrative shifts to FIA President, Mohammed Ben Sulayem who finds himself in yet another controversy. This time he’s reportedly under investigation for allegedly attempting to interfere with the result of a Formula 1 race.
The race in question was the 2023 Saudi Arabian GP, where Fernando Alonso finished third on-track before a 10-second penalty was enforced. The penalty was due to Alonso’s Aston Martin F1 team touching the car too soon during a different penalty stop.
Eventually, the Aston Martin F1 argued successfully against the penalty and the ruling was overturned.
The current developing story in question now, was first reported by BBS.com, read here.
To summarize this new mess, a whistleblower has come forward and accused Ben Sulayem of attempting to sway the outcome by seeking to overturn Alonso’s 10-second penalty. According to the BBC, the FIA’s ethics committee is looking into the matter, with FIA compliance officer Paolo Basarri, a member of the organization since 2017, having submitted a report.
Again, if Ben Sulayem would have left well enough alone, Aston Martin F1 eventually succeed in reversing the on-track penalty following another review.
Drama. Drama. Drama.
How long will Liberty Media (the owners of F1) let these made for reality television continue before their too embarrassed? Or, they welcome the drama..
As the saying goes, “there’s no such thing as bad press.”
Article by AutomotiveWoman.com Editor, Juliana Chiovitti, aka @AutomotiveWoman online.
IMAGES: F1
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