FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is currently under investigation by the organization he leads for allegedly interfering with a decision made by Formula 1 stewards during the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. According to a report seen by the BBC, the FIA compliance officer submitted a report to the ethics committee, claiming that Ben Sulayem applied pressure to have a 10-second penalty overturned, which initially cost Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin a podium finish in the race.
Alonso received the penalty for his mechanics touching his car in the pitlane before he had fully served a previous five-second penalty for lining up incorrectly on the starting grid. A whistleblower has alleged that Ben Sulayem contacted Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamas bin Isa Al Khalifa, the FIA’s president for sport in the Middle East and North Africa, and expressed his belief that the 10-second penalty should be rescinded. Ben Sulayem reportedly expected the F1 stewards to reverse their decision.
Initially, the stewards defended their decision by stating that there was no clear agreement that a jack touching a car would be considered as working on the car. However, F1’s sporting rules were subsequently updated to clarify that any form of touching the car or driver, whether by hand, tools, or equipment, would be deemed as working on the car.
Since taking over from Jean Todt at the end of 2021, Ben Sulayem’s presidency has been marred by controversy. The FIA’s ability to regulate F1 under his leadership has frequently been criticized, leading to the resignation of several high-ranking officials within the organization. Ben Sulayem has also faced backlash from Formula One Management, the commercial body of F1, for publicly commenting on the championship’s commercial value and unilaterally attempting to introduce an 11th team to the grid.
Andretti successfully went through the application process, but their entry into F1 was rejected by the commercial rights holder on commercial grounds. Towards the end of the previous season, Ben Sulayem’s FIA potentially exposed itself to legal action by initiating an investigation into Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff and F1 Academy managing director Susie Wolff. The investigation alleged a conflict of interest, but it was quickly dropped after all 10 F1 teams unanimously stated that none of them had filed any complaints.
The BBC has reported that the ethics committee is expected to release its report within the next four to six weeks.