Motor racing-FIA reduces penalty for swearing after driver backlash
(Reuters) -The maximum penalties for drivers swearing has been reduced by 50% while stewards will also be given more discretion on deciding penalties, the governing FIA said on Wednesday.
Competitors in Formula One and rallying have been at loggerheads with FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem over a crackdown on bad language during events.
Ben Sulayem said last month that he was considering "improvements" to rules.
World championship rally drivers had made a breakthrough in April when they reached a compromise to divide events into a controlled zone and an uncontrolled one, with the change now being implemented across all events sanctioned by the FIA.
The FIA said the base maximum penalty has been reduced from 10,000 euros ($11,214) to 5,000 euros while stewards will have the option to fully suspend a penalty if it is the first offence by a driver or a team.
Moreover, stewards will be able to differentiate between "controlled and non-controlled environments".
Controlled environments include press conferences while tracks or rally stages are uncontrolled environments.
"As a former rally driver, I know firsthand the range of emotions that are faced during competition," said Ben Sulayem, who is up for re-election at the end of the year.
"I have led an extensive and collaborative review with contributions from across the seven FIA World Championships, FIA Member Clubs and other motor sports organisations.
"The improvements the FIA has announced today to Appendix B will ensure we continue to promote the best of sportsmanship in motor sport, while also giving stewards effective guidelines to act against individuals who may bring the sport into disrepute."
Appendix B covers stewards' penalty guidelines, setting out punishments for misconduct including words, deeds or writings that might have caused moral injury to the FIA or motorsport in general.
Mitigating circumstances will also be considered while the abuse of officials will now result in sporting penalties instead of fines.
Formula One Stewards Chair Garry Connelly said the new changes would give stewards guidance to "differentiate between on- and off-track issues".
"Drivers are looked up to as role models by young fans and are rightly seen as ambassadors for the wider world of motor sport," said Ronan Morgan, president of the Drivers'Committee.
"How they act really does matter but it is important to recognise that there is a difference between what is said during a race and in a press conference."
Last season, Red Bull's triple world champion Max Verstappen was punished for his language in a press conference at the Singapore Grand Prix in September.
Meanwhile, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was fined 10,000 euros for swearing at the Mexico City Grand Prix.
($1 = 0.8917 euros)
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru;Editing by Christian Radnedge)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
32 minutes ago
- The Star
Formula One unlikely to return to Sepang, MotoGP the priority, says SIC
PETALING JAYA: Sepang International Circuit (SIC) has made it clear that their current priority is to make sure Malaysia continues to host MotoGP and has downplayed the possibility of Formula One making a comeback to Sepang. During a recent MotoGP event, SIC chief executive officer Azhan Shafriman Hanif said Malaysia must look to secure hosting rights for MotoGP and should avoid "making the same mistake" by letting Formula One go. He went on to add that SIC and a number of other stakeholders are keen on having Formula One return to Sepang but highlighted the high organising costs and long waiting list to get on the race calendar. This sparked excitement and debate on whether Malaysia should host Formula One again. SIC, however, released a statement on Wednesday (Aug 20) reaffirming their commitment to MotoGP. Malaysia's current deal with Dorna Sports to host the pinnacle of two-wheeled racing expires in 2026 and is due for renewal. "SIC wishes to clarify recent media reports. Our CEO's recent remarks referred specifically to the renewal of the MotoGP Malaysia contract beyond 2026, and not in relation to the potential return of Formula One. "While Formula One remains a significant part of our history, regaining its hosting rights has proven to be both complex and costly. "The key priority is safeguarding MotoGP, which continues to resonate strongly with Malaysian fans and remains more accessible from both a spectator and organisational standpoint," he said, adding that Malaysia's contract to host MotoGP runs until 2026. "SIC is fully committed to working closely with the government through the Youth and Sports Ministry as well as with Dorna Sports and other relevant stakeholders to ensure the continuation of this world-class and longest running international event in Malaysia." Sepang, which was purpose-built to run Formula One races, hosted Formula One from 1999 until 2017. The decision to drop the race was made in 2017 due to high organising costs.
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Rugby-Springboks set Wembley date with Japan on November 1
(Reuters) -South Africa have added a date with Japan at London's Wembley Stadium to their autumn international series with the fixture to take place on November 1 in a rematch of an iconic game from 2015 Rugby World Cup. Coach Eddie Jones' Japan famously beat South Africa 34-32 in what was dubbed the 'Miracle of Brighton', though the Springboks exacted revenge by knocking the Asian side out of their own World Cup on their way to lifting the trophy in 2019.
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Rugby-Argentina look to take positives into second match against All Blacks
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) -Argentina were beaten handily by New Zealand in last weekend's Rugby Championship clash in Cordoba but winger Rodrigo Isgro says the defeat should not overshadow the positive aspects of the home team's performance. The two countries meet again in Buenos Aires on Saturday in their second game of the Southern Hemisphere competition after the All Blacks won 41-24 last weekend. "Obviously, it's the All Blacks. They knew how to take advantage of our mistakes,' Isgro told reporters at training. "But we also cancelled a lot of what they had planned, but they changed their game and started to make it simpler, and we couldn't dominate them there. "Even so, I think we were in the contest throughout the entire match. We came within a try in the second half of tying them. There were a lot of things that we worked on during the week before that we utilised well in the match, which for me is super important." The 26-year-old, who plays his club rugby at Harlequins in London, was one of the three try scorers for Argentina in Cordoba. "It was my first game against the All Blacks. There's something different about playing them," he said. 'The day before the test, I remembered when I used to do the haka at home. There were sentimental aspects to playing the All Blacks, which made me really emotional. "But once I was out there, I knew the attention the game required, and you must try to manage any emotions. "Personally, I felt good. I'm quite self-critical. I know I must keep improving and there are things I can do much better.' Looking ahead to Saturday's game at Estadio Jose Amalfitani, Isgro said: "This weekend is going to be tougher and they're going to come with other things. "We have to focus on ourselves. We made a lot of unforced errors in the match, and we have to work on that, on the details." (Writing by Mark Gleeson in Johannesburg; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
