Michael Masi Fired As F1 Race Director; Other Changes Made Ahead Of 2022 Season

When the 2022 Formula 1 season gets underway in March, oversight of the races will be much different than the controversial finish to the 2021 season.

The FIA announced on Thursday that race director Michael Masi has been removed and offered a new position within the governing body.

Masi has been under fire ever since the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – the last and deciding race of the season – after his decision to first not allow lapped cars between race leader Lewis Hamilton and second-place driver Max Verstappen to pass the safety car on a last-lap sprint to the finish, only to double back on the decision. In doing so, Verstappen was placed directly behind Hamilton on restart. With Verstappen on fresher tires, he was able to overtake Hamilton and win not only the race but the championship.

FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem said Masi “accomplished a very challenging job for three years as F1 race director following Charlie Whiting”.

The FIA will now provide two race directors that will alternate at the race director position. Niels Wittich and Eduardo Freitas, who have recently worked in the World Endurance Championship and DTM, will take on the position.

Many believe that Masi was swayed by direct communications from the team principals, most notably Christian Horner of Red Bull, as part of the Abu Dhabi race. The matter of direct communication will no longer take place.

Now, a “Virtual Race Control Room” will be used to assist the on-site race director.

“Alike the Video Assistance Referee (VAR) in football, it will be positioned in one of the FIA Offices as a backup outside the circuit. In real-time connection with the FIA F1 race director, it will help to apply the sporting regulations using the most modern technological tools,” Sulayem said. “Direct radio communications during the race, currently broadcast live by all TVs, will be removed in order to protect the race director from any pressure and allow him to take decisions peacefully. It will still be possible to ask questions to the race director, according to a well-defined and non-intrusive process.”

Sulayem added that the issue of lapped cars passing the safety car under caution would be “reassessed by the F1 Sporting Advisory Committee and presented to the next F1 Commission prior to the start of the season.”

The outcome of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix hung over the F1 world throughout the off-season when Hamilton went into social media silence following the devastating loss. He did not commit to returning to the 2022 season until this week. Hamilton is tied with Michael Schumacher with seven F1 championships. He is seeking an eighth that would put him at the top with most championships won in an F1 career.

The FIA announced earlier in the week that other changes will be made to avoid other controversies that occurred last season. In 2021, the Belgian Grand Prix saw heavy rain on race day. It was decided that the cars following the safety car in qualifying order for two laps under caution would be considered a “race.” For 2022 that will no longer be allowed with different points being awarded depending on how long a race runs before being called due to weather conditions. At a minimum, the field will race at full speed for two laps.