War is declared on “put***” and other bad words… While the FIA had tightened the rules during last season, this time, the International Automobile Federation decides to take a further step in sanctions.
All car drivers, in all competitions, will be punished more heavily in the event of bad conduct or rude language, launched at a press conference or on the radio.
The international body published this Wednesday evening, on its website, a new version of the International Sports Code which will apply to all its competitions including F1.
Up to 180,000 euros fine for F1 drivers
Thus, the lines are tightened and any driver who behaves in a way that is not in accordance with them could be subject to heavy fines, a withdrawal of points or even an outright suspension in the event of a repeat offense.
In order to be able to quantify profanity, a penalty grid has been established. Fines ranging from 10,000 to 15,000 euros may be imposed for a first offense, from 20,000 to 30,000 euros for a repeat offense and 30,000 to 45,000 euros for a second offense.
But these amounts will be multiplied by four for Formula 1 driversin threes for those competing in world rally championships (WRC) or endurance championships (WEC) and in twos for participants in regional championships.
Whether this will have any effect on swearing remains to be seen. During the 2024 season, several sanctions were imposed, notably on Max Vertappen who received community service. The obscenity in question? Verstappen blurted it out when asked why his Mexican teammate Sergio Pérez was faster than him last weekend in Azerbaijan. “I don't know, different settings. As soon as I started qualifying, I knew the car was fucked,” he replied.
-Charles Leclerc also had to take out the checkbook. The Monegasque had used flowery language in a press conference after the Mexican Grand Prix but immediately apologized. Result of the races despite everything? A fine of 10,000 euros, 5,000 of which are suspended in the absence of recurrence within one year, had been given to him.
Needless to say, these new provisions are unlikely to delight pilots. During the season, the latter denounced the severity of these penalties and even criticized certain statements by the president of the FIA, Mohamed Ben Sulayem.
We urge the FIA President to also consider his own tone and language
“When it comes to swearing, there is a difference between a swear word intended to insult others and more casual swear words, such as those one might use when talking about bad weather, an inanimate object such as a car Formula 1, or a driving situation”the pilots wrote in an open letter at the beginning of November judging that the fines were not “not appropriate”.
“We urge the FIA President to also consider his own tone and language when addressing or speaking about our member drivers, whether in a public forum or elsewhere. Furthermore, our members are adults, they do not need to be instructed through the media on such trivial matters as wearing jewelry or underwear.”they added, reminding the FIA boss of previous incidents which pitted the organization against Lewis Hamilton over the wearing of jewelry during races. The FIA also reminded them of the need to wear flame-retardant underwear.
The WRC season begins this Thursday, January 23 with the Monte-Carlo rally, while the F1 season will begin in mid-March in Melbourne, Australia.
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