Alarming details emerge within the FIA as Mohammad Ben Sulayem takes steps after the Carlos Sainz announcement

Reportedly, FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem might take some drastic steps, amidst Carlos Sainz Sr. admitting that he considered running against the former. The Emirati has been at the helm of the governing body since the start of the 2022 season, as he replaced former Ferrari manager Jean Todt in the position.

Ben Sulayem, who was previously a Rally Car icon, has had a controversial time as an FIA President and has lately become unpopular among F1 fans, drivers, and other key personnel in the organization during his regime.

Ben Sulayem's reign has often been criticized as authoritarian, given the way he has chosen to approach things. However, as per BBC, the 63-year-old, who is in his final year of the FIA Presidency, has proposed several radical changes that will be discussed in the upcoming FIA General Assembly next month.

F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia - Source: Getty

One of the changes would see Ben Sulayem have the power to bar any possible candidates running against him in the FIA Presidency elections. The controversial proposal claimed that the candidate must not have "anything in the record of the candidates standing for the election as members of the presidential list that calls into question their professional integrity."

The proposed revision is not present in the statutes and the internal regulations as one of the eligibility criteria for the candidate. This might have been reportedly proposed to derail Carlos Sainz Sr.'s upcoming campaign against Mohammed Ben Sulayem.

Williams F1 team boss extends his support to Carlos Sainz Sr. to run for FIA President

Williams F1 team principal James Vowles stated that he would endorse Carlos Sainz Sr.'s candidacy for FIA President in the upcoming elections due to his experience as a multiple world champion in motorsports.

Speaking at an event last week, the Brit reflected on the Spaniard, via ESPN:

"I think he would simply because he's got a couple of world championships to name, he's got a breadth of motorsport [experience]. He understands single-seater [racing] down into rallying.

"He's been I think already president of some of the mobility bits inside Spain, so this isn't probably as big a step as some may think, but it's up to him to decide whether or not it's direction he wants to take."

Carlos Sainz Sr. had openly expressed his interest in the post to Autosport and said:

"I have my track record and people know me well enough to understand that this will not be an issue. Obviously, I will have to step down regarding my role with Carlos and his career but this is not an issue at all."

The 63-year-old is part of his son, Carlos Sainz Jr.'s management team, along with the latter's cousin, Carlos Onoros.