How F1’s political battles raged on through the winter

At the end of the longest season in Formula 1 history, which finished less than two weeks before Christmas, the paddock felt in need of a real break. December 2021 was always going to bring a big shift for F1’s political landscape, with the end of Jean Todt’s tenure as FIA president and the start of a new regulations cycle. But few could have predicted how much would change between the last race of 2021 and the first of 2022 as controversy on track, political tension off it, and the outbreak of war resulted in some seismic shifts.

F1’s news cycle never really stopped through the winter. Fans eagerly – sometimes too eagerly – wanted updates from the FIA regarding race director Michael Masi’s future amid the fallout from the 2021 Abu Dhabi finale. Lewis Hamilton’s future even seemed in doubt after the fashion of his title defeat left him “disillusioned” with F1, according to Mercedes chief Toto Wolff. Uncertainty loomed.

It all threatened to overshadow the start of an important new era for F1. So much energy had been put into the 2022 regulations, delayed by a year, and which promised better racing and closer competition. They should have been what F1 could fanfare off the back of one of the closest and most exciting championship battles in recent history – and yet all anyone could focus on was the past.

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But action was needed from the FIA before it was possible for anyone to move on. Hamilton hunkered down with his family, making F1 “the last thing I really wanted to talk to anyone about”. Even when newly elected FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem tried to get in contact, Hamilton did not wish to talk immediately. His silence was a message in itself to the governing body’s leader.

There was a mix of feelings about Masi’s future and whether he could continue in the role. Most accepted that the structure of the FIA’s operations had placed too much on the shoulders of one man, suggesting changes could pave the way for him to carry on.

But in the end, there was no way for him to continue, leading to the announcement – timed during Ferrari’s launch, curiously, although the FIA claimed it was not a bid to bury bad news – that Masi would be replaced by two race directors from 2022: Eduardo Freitas from the WEC and Niels Wittich, formerly of the DTM. Both would enjoy support from Herbie Blash, the late Charlie Whiting’s long-serving number two, as a new senior advisor, as well as from a new virtual race control room that was likened to VAR used in football.

Race director Masi, pictured with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, was axed by the new ben Sulayem administration

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

The pace of the FIA’s action – or lack of – served as a source of frustration for many within the paddock. The withering statement issued in the days after the Abu Dhabi GP, claiming there had been a “misunderstanding” amid the pledge to investigate matters, was not followed up for nearly a month, when it outlined plans to speak to drivers and teams about changes for the year ahead.

It took another month for the FIA to announce Masi’s exit and the restructure. While there was a need for thoroughness and consultation, the pace at which things moved did little to give closure to those who rightly felt aggrieved. The full report is still yet to be published, and it remains unclear if it will be.

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“Hopefully everyone will get to see it, and to have perhaps a better understanding of everything,” said Hamilton, who made clear he didn’t seriously consider quitting because of Abu Dhabi. “Like everything, it’s down to understanding where we’ve been, so we can move forwards and in a positive light.”

The debate over the sidepods pointed to the potential for spats between teams over their interpretations of the new regulations, particularly as most have opted for such different concepts, to the surprise of many

Regaining trust is the sternest challenge the FIA faces heading into the 2022 season and the start of F1’s new technical era, which finally arrives after two and a half years of anticipation. The changes are a start, and defused some of the tension that had built in the wake of Abu Dhabi. Wolff welcomed the moves, calling them “necessary”, and expressed optimism that they would prevent a recurrence. Many drivers and teams gave thanks to Masi, understanding the task he had faced in the role. He is set to be given a new position within the FIA that is still to be announced.

Red Bull wasn’t looking to let the dust settle. In his first media appearance of the year at pre-season testing, Max Verstappen called the decision to axe Masi “very unfair” and said the Australian had been “thrown under the bus”, while team boss Christian Horner claimed in one interview that Mercedes had been “bullying” with its actions.

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The friction rumbled on even as the new cars were unveiled and testing got under way, intensifying when Mercedes turned up at the second test with a radical sidepod design. Horner was quoted questioning their legality or whether they were in the spirit of the regulations, only for him to deny the comments and say the W13 car “looks like it complies with the regulations”. No love has been lost between last year’s title fighters.

Yet a wander around the Bahrain paddock during testing last week led to a sighting of Wolff and Horner chatting together, mere months after Horner had claimed there was “no relationship” between them.

Wolff's rivalry with Horner remains as fierce as ever

Photo by: FIA Pool

“As far as relationships with Toto, whilst there is an intense rivalry, there is still that respect at the end of the day,” Horner said. “We’ll be competing hard again this year. It looks like some of our colleagues will be in that fight as well, and hopefully it could even make it more exciting.”

PLUS: Why Red Bull and Ferrari really start as F1’s early 2022 ‘favourites’

The debate over the sidepods pointed to the potential for spats between teams over their interpretations of the new regulations, particularly as most have opted for such different concepts, to the surprise of many. Ross Brawn, one of the key architects of the rules, thought there were “bound to be disputes” given F1’s DNA and it would be “naive” to think otherwise. But the general feeling is that the new ruleset won’t offer any silver bullets or grey areas that could spark big rows or upset the competitive balance.

Because that is what the changes in F1 for 2022 are aimed at: greater competition and greater sustainability for the series as a whole. That doesn’t just go for the technical regulations. This will be the second year of F1’s cost cap, which drops from $145million per team to $140m for the season, but the first year where it directly impacts the development of the cars given the 2021 models were largely carried over due to COVID-19. The revised governance structure introduced last year under the new Concorde Agreement also sought greater fairness.

But it was this very governance structure that ultimately prevented F1 from going through with its sprint race plans for the new season. The major format change for last year had gone down as a success for F1, which reported it had interest from every single promoter to stage a Saturday race in 2022. An initial plan for six sprints had to be shelved amid a dispute over cost-cap increases, meaning only three – Imola, Red Bull Ring and Interlagos – will happen this year as a compromise.

The push, predictably, came from F1’s biggest operations, for which the cost cap has been an ongoing challenge. It led to a fiery rebuttal from McLaren boss Zak Brown, who accused them of “effectively holding the sport hostage from what’s best for the fans and therefore the sport at large”, as well as hitting out at the support that so-called B-teams were showing their parent squads. Brown said that one team was seeking a $5million increase to account for the additional sprints, which he called “nonsense”.

The cost cap has naturally remained a sore subject. While all agree on the importance of making F1 sustainable, the current global climate and rising inflation have led to added pressures.

“We are not only reducing by $5m, but we have a situation where you’re not able to really increase the costs and the payroll,” said Wolff. “And on the other side, you have to decide very carefully where you invest your dollar in R&D. In the past, it was a little bit easier because you could follow various avenues in chasing performance. Today you have to decide which one has the highest potential and then embark on it. It’s a totally different way of operating for the big teams.”

Plans to increase the number of sprint races to six were shelved due to cost concerns

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

Consensus may be hard to find among F1 teams but, when the paddock came together for pre-season testing at Barcelona, a far greater global issue had everyone on the same page. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shocked the world, and left F1 with some big issues to tackle. The decision was quickly taken to call off the Russian Grand Prix scheduled for September, with the race’s contract subsequently being terminated, meaning that the planned move from Sochi to St Petersburg next year will now not take place. Sebastian Vettel had already said he would boycott the race if it did go ahead, but the decision was unanimous.

It also had a direct impact on other Russian interests in F1, chiefly concerning Nikita Mazepin and Uralkali, the company co-owned by his father that was the title sponsor of the Haas team. The squad announced ahead of the second test in Bahrain that it had terminated both Mazepin’s contract and the sponsorship agreement, ending a turbulent 15 months of association.

Mazepin hit back by saying his willingness to race under the conditions laid out by the FIA had been ignored. The FIA had gone against the International Olympic Committee’s recommendation to suspend all Russian athletes, instead saying that they could continue to race under a neutral flag, only for national federations to take their own action.

It may have been a tricky winter at times for F1, but the series has not lost sight of the wider global issues at play right now

Mazepin also made a number of other parting shots at Haas, and said he would be setting up a foundation to help Russian athletes unable to take part in events because of the restrictions, pointedly called ‘We Compete As One’ – a tone-deaf echo of F1’s ‘We Race As One’ programme.

It may have been a tricky winter at times for F1, but the series has not lost sight of the wider global issues at play right now. A show of support for Ukraine came from the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association ahead of the second test in Bahrain when drivers got together for a photoshoot with T-shirts reading “no war”.

Sport can often provide solace in difficult times, and F1’s hope will be that the excitement of 2022 can do precisely that. Big changes have taken place that should set the series up for a more sustainable and efficient future, while learning from the mistakes of last year that still cast shadows entering the series’ new era.

F1 drivers presented a united front in Bahrain prior to testing, wearing "No War" T-shirts in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images