Ben Sulaymen’s feedback got here in an interview with Autosport,, external wherein he urged drivers may very well be hit with penalties for swearing over crew radio in races.
Swear phrases are all the time bleeped out throughout TV broadcasts by F1, which delays the transmission of crew radio conversations to allow them to be vetted for language.
Ben Sulayem stated: “We’re not rappers, . They are saying the f-word what number of instances per minute? We’re not on that. That is them and we’re [us].”
He stated he understood that drivers have been “within the warmth of the second” however added: “We’ve got to watch out with our conduct. We have to be accountable individuals.
“And now with the know-how, the whole lot goes dwell and the whole lot goes to be recorded. On the finish of the day, now we have to check that to see: can we minimise what’s being stated publicly?
“As a result of think about you might be sitting along with your kids and watching the race after which somebody is saying all of this soiled language. I imply, what would your kids or grandchildren say? What would you educate them if that’s your sport?”
A number of drivers pushed again towards Ben Sulaymen’s remarks.
World champion Max Verstappen stated that the remarks may merely not be broadcast, including: “You’ll swear anyway. If it is not on this room possibly some place else. Everybody swears. Some individuals a bit greater than others. It additionally relies upon a bit what language you converse. After all, abuse is one thing else.
“You need to in all probability restrict it or have a little bit of a delay which you could censor out a couple of issues. That can assist much more than placing bans on drivers as a result of for instance I could not even say the f-word.
“After which, excuse me for the language however come on, what are we? 5-year-olds, six-year-olds? Even when a five-year-old or six-year-old is watching, I imply, they’ll finally swear anyway even when their mother and father will not or they won’t enable it.
“After they develop up they’ll stroll round with their pals and they are going to be swearing. So this isn’t altering something.”
And his title rival Lando Norris of McLaren stated: “They’ll simply not play the radios, so it’s fairly easy from their aspect, we’re the fellows within the warmth of the second beneath stress, beneath stress, preventing, having huge crashes, it’s only a lot simpler for them to say than for us to do.
“We’re on the market placing our hearts on the road making an attempt to race individuals, we’re giving it our all, our coronary heart charges are so excessive, we’re simply placing our ardour and love into it.
“After all there’s going to be some unhealthy phrases on the opposite aspect of it, however that’s simply cos we’re making an attempt and we need to give our greatest and we really feel laborious performed by when issues don’t go proper, due to pleasure and stuff.”
It’s the newest in a collection of controversies wherein Ben Sulayem has discovered himself embroiled since changing into FIA president in December 2021.
The FIA is being sued by Susie Wolff, the director of the F1 Academy for aspiring feminine drivers, after it launched a battle of curiosity inquiry into her and her husband Toto, the Mercedes crew principal, final yr.
He was earlier this yr cleared of interfering with race results following allegations by a whistleblower.
In different controversies, he received a cease-and-desist letter from F1’s lawyers following his response on social media to a narrative claiming Saudi Arabia’s Public Funding fund had tried to purchase the game.
And he has defended historic sexist remarks on his former web site.
