Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur has criticized the FIA’s handling of the recent drama involving Toto and Susie Wolff, the latter of whom was accused of providing “confidential” information to the Mercedes team principal.
Based on “media speculation” and a report from one publication, the FIA recently released a statement questioning whether or not a “FOM personnel” had given information to a team principal. Teams had reportedly complained to the FIA about this.
The FIA announced that they would be looking into the situation, though they did not name anyone in particular. Neither Mercedes nor F1 were made aware of the statement’s release.
The claims were refuted by statements from F1 and the Silver Arrows after it became evident that they were aimed at the managing director of the F1 Academy and the head of Mercedes.
Susie, who was the target of the majority of the accusations, received support from both businesses as well.
She attacked the governing body in a statement she released, calling it misogynistic and casting doubt on her honesty.
Amazingly, the other nine paddock teams issued identical statements, emphasizing that they had not lodged complaints with the FIA regarding the managing director of the F1 Academy, whom they firmly believed in.
After all of the Formula One teams banded together to oppose them, the FIA issued a second statement in which it stated that there would be no investigation.
In fact, the saga has exacerbated already-existing tensions between F1 and the FIA to the point where Vasseur concedes that the original story was badly handled and “embarrassing for our sport.”
According to Motorsport.com, Vasseur stated, “I think this story is quite embarrassing for our sport for.”
“I’m not sure if newspaper is the right word, but an article in it served as the starting point for the story. Furthermore, I believe that when discussing a specific person in this context, you should be careful with your words.
“I believe the FIA should have done so; they required a full day to go between the initial and subsequent announcements. To prevent erroneous conclusions, it would have been prudent to conduct the investigation during the 24 hours prior to the initial announcement.
All the teams came together, which was a positive outcome despite the horror of how the FIA handled the allegations.
This was very pleasing to Vasseur, who noted that it was the “first time” it had occurred.
Vasseur continued, “The teams were very united after the ‘incident’ of last week at least.” “My first takeaway is that we were able to work together, and even Red Bull was supportive of Toto, which doesn’t happen very often!
Furthermore, I believe it’s a good idea for us to discuss with the other stakeholders and adopt a stance on the matter. I believe this is the first time the teams have demonstrated something similar together.
