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FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem revealed that former F1 race director Michael Masi was a victim of abuse and attack as he "went through hell" because of the decision he made at the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP.
More than two years have passed since the controversial decision was taken by FIA race director Michael Masi in Abu Dhabi which led to Max Verstappen's maiden title victory. When a late safety car brought the entire grid together on the final laps, Lewis Hamilton, who was leading the race (being chased by Max Verstappen on equal points at P2), looked likely to win his eighth world championship.
Soon after Red Bull team principal Christian Horner spoke to Masi about the lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen, the latter, however, made the decision to allow them to unlap. Controversially, only the cars between Hamilton and Verstappen were allowed to unlap, which led to the entire result of the race being affected. For this, Michael Masi was sacked from the position.
Mohammed Ben Sulayem recently opened up on the topic, stating that he has apologised for what happened that night but also mentioned that Masi was a victim of attack.
"I always apologise, but I cannot apologise for something which was done before my time. OK, I will do the apology, but I will bring Michael Masi again. Do you think that is right?" Independent quoted him as saying.
Sulayem added that if the FIA had an opportunity that sat perfectly well for Masi, he would bring him back.
"The poor guy is a person who has been attacked and abused. Michael Masi went through hell. Hell! And if I see there is an opportunity that the FIA needs, and Michael Masi is the right person, I will bring him," he said.
FIA president reveals the reason he did not change the result of the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP
The Mercedes F1 team tried the best within their powers to alter the result of the race to try and get Lewis Hamilton his record-breaking eighth Formula 1 title. Despite the fact that the FIA had deemed it "human error" months after the Grand Prix, the result remained unchanged.
Mohammed Ben Sulayem revealed that he had received death threats because he did not change the result of the race even when he had the powers. He gave the example of the 1966 FIFA World Cup to settle the debate.
"I even had people threatening to kill me because I had the power to change it. But I said to them: ‘Sorry, the World Cup of 1966, England against Germany, was that correct? Did they change it? No.’ Did they give it to Germany? Nein," he said.
A goal scored by England's Geoff Hurst in the 101st minute of the 1966 game (against West Germany) gave the team the lead and they ended up winning their first and only World Cup to date. The goal was controversial as the ball hit the crossbar and then struck the goal line below. Because of the lack of technology, the goal was given and Germany lost 4-2.
Since the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP, Lewis Hamilton is yet to win a race while Mercedes has only won a single race (Brazil, 2022, George Russell). The team is hoping to get more competitive against their rivals. They finished second in the 2023 F1 world championship.
