Jean Todt’s term as FIA president ended three days after the controversial Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2021. Max Verstappen then became world champion, ahead of Lewis Hamilton on the last lap after the restart, but the decisions of Michael Masi, now former FIA driver, were controversial to say the least.
The investigation into the circumstances of that race, which led to Masi’s resignation, was already headed by the federation’s new president, who became Mohammed bin Sulayem.
Todt was not in Abu Dhabi that race weekend, but both Christian Horner and Toto Wolff, CEOs of the two teams fighting for the title, asked him to intervene.
“But I did nothing, the role of FIA president does not imply this,” Jean Todt recalled in an interview with Corriere della Sera newspaper. At the same time, he drew a parallel with the position of FIFA President Gianni Infantino: “Referees must be independent. Remember Infantino’s words: “In this case, I don’t know if the referee made a mistake there”?
I watched that race at my mansion with my federation colleagues. Both Horner and Wolff called me, but they also replied, “I can’t interfere, this is the responsibility of the marshals and the race director.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
