In the context of the sanctions imposed on Sébastien Ogier in the WRC and Max Verstappen in F1 by the FIA bodies, Ott Tänak did not hide the fact that he was “really hard to know how to behave” during interviews.
For the Frenchman, it was a suspended fine of 30,000 euros for comments aimed at officials about the clouds of dust raised on the route, at the end of the first special stage of the Acropolis Rally. As for the Dutchman, he was sanctioned with an obligation to participate in activities of general interest due to the use of a swear word during the official press conference on Thursday at the Singapore GP.
Verstappen’s sanction came after the publication on Motorsport.com of an exclusive interview with the president of the FIA, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, in which the latter believed that there was a need for less profanity in TV broadcasts of Formula 1. As the press conference was actually broadcast on television, it is fell within the possible scope of intervention of the commissioners, which justified the investigation and the sanction.
The three-time world champion reacted by voluntarily choosing to only give short answers during the post-qualifying conference, before reserving more detailed statements for an impromptu conference outside the room and therefore outside the “jurisdiction ” of the commissioners.
It is in this context that, during an interview at the end of shakedown on Thursday at Rally Chile, Tänak said: “Let’s see how the rally goes. It’s quite an interesting time, I’m not sure what I can say but I’m living the dream and enjoying the cars.”
When later asked about this comment, he explained: “I mean we’re in a strange time in motorsport, where you have to be very careful about what you say and how you express your emotions, they’re not really allowed right now.
When asked if he was concerned about the direction the FIA was taking regarding driver interviews, he replied: “Yes, in rallying with Seb and in Formula 1 as well, with all these things coming together, it seems like we’re really in the crosshairs at the moment. Let’s see where it goes from here.”
“At the moment it’s hard to say what the goal is, the promoter should probably take us aside and explain what he expects, but for now, giving end-of-special interviews without any emotion … It’s really hard to know how to behave.”
With Tom Howard
VIDEO – Rally Chile: shakedown summary
