FIA president signals a change to swearing punishments which have upset Formula 1 drivers

The president of Formula s governing body FIA has signaled he ll make improvements to punishments for swearing and criticism which have sparked a backlash from F drivers FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem posted on Instagram Monday that after constructive feedback from drivers across the various event the FIA governs I am considering making improvements to Appendix B That s the document which lays out the punishments for a range of offenses ranging from physical violence to political statements swearing and any comments deemed to cause moral injury or loss to FIA Ben Sulayem has been seeking to crack down on swearing since last year and punishments were tightened for to allow for larger fines and suspensions for drivers who swear repeatedly The crackdown on swearing prompted a backlash from F drivers when Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc were punished last year Leclerc was fined and Verstappen was required to make amends with district arrangement Drivers in the World Rally Championship boycotted TV interviews last month after one of them was fined After the last F race in Saudi Arabia Verstappen refused to talk about a penalty which cost him the lead because he suggested any criticism risked current the FIA rules I know that I cannot swear in here but at the same time you can also not be critical he stated There was one sign of a more flexible approach when Carlos Sainz Jr wasn t fined for using an expletive in a news conference while he protested another fine for being late for a national anthem Humans make the rules and humans can improve the rules Ben Sulayem wrote Monday The principle of continuous improvement is something I have unfailingly concluded in and is at the heart of all we do at the FIA AP auto racing https apnews com hub auto-racing Source