The world of Formula 1 has been having multiple shocking revelations with every passing day. Hence, as the Christian Horner investigation saga continues to create controversy, another shocking news surfaced. FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is reportedly under investigation for allegedly interfering with a Formula 1 race result.
According to BBC, Ben Sulayem was allegedly involved in some mischief regarding the 2023 Saudi Arabian GP. The president has been accused of trying to intervene and overturn a penalty given to Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso during the race. Although there have been no official announcements over the same. BBC officials claim that the report was by an FIA compliance officer to the ethics committee.
Alonso had been handed out a ten-second penalty due to the crew working on the car, on top of the previous five-second penalty. However, Ben Sulayem told FIA’s vice-president, Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamas bin Isa Al Khalifa that the penalty needed to be revoked and not deserved. The compliance officer Paolo Basarri shared how the 62-year-old intervened and manipulated the results.
[Ben Sulayem] pretended [require in Italian] the stewards to overturn their decision to issue.
Basarii said, as reported by BBC.com.
Did Mohammed Ben Sulayem actually interfere with the penalty
Fernando Alonso’s starting grid alignment had garnered him a five-second penalty due to him being outside the box. However, the penalty was served after the two-time world champion pitted. Subsequently, the steward awarded the driver with another ten-second penalty due to Aston Martin breaking rules by working on the car. Hence, if Ben Sulayem is found guilty and the ten-second penalty is reimposed, Alonso would fall to P5 and lose his podium finish.
The crew lifted the car on jacks despite the five-second penalty of ‘no working’ on the car. Hence, the penalty was given to the driver. However, following Ben Sulayem’s alleged intervention, the articles of sporting regulations had a loophole and hence the penalty was to be canceled for the driver. The entire investigation would last around anywhere from four to six weeks. Hence, the races would continue regardless of the alleged action around the FIA president.
However, the world of Formula 1 continues to receive shocking revelations amidst the ongoing 2024 season. Ben Sulayem’s investigation would last for a couple of weeks and the grid awaits further information on the same. Currently, not much information has been shared about the entire status quo as the ethics committee started to investigate the matter.
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