FIA President Slams British Media After Verstappen's And His Own Mistreatment
F1Thursday, 03 October 2024 at 22:00
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem discussed Max Verstappen and British media as he suggested they have also mistreated him.
F1 fans on social media have long criticized British media for being biased, but Adrian Newey's recent comments triggered even bigger outrage.
The legendary F1 car designer asserted that Max Verstappen suffered a lot of demonization, partly caused by British media, namely Sky Sport's "nationalistic" coverage (with international reach).
The triple World Champion has not made a big deal out of it, but he has agreed that he can feel that many experts on F1 broadcasts are British and naturally prefer their own countrymen.
In an interview with Motorsport.com, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem empathized with Verstappen and asserted that he felt something similar as he has been "convicted" by the British media.
"I respect Max [Verstappen] because I'm a driver. I was a champion and I respect winners and champions."
Sulayem is a former Rally driver and one of the most successful drivers in the history of the Middle East Rally Championship. He won 14 titles in the years 1985-1991,1994, and 1996-2002.
"I see he had his share [of mistreatment], but let's talk about me. If you look at the British media and what they did to me… For God's sake, they convicted me."
In December 2021, Sulayem was appointed as the new president of F1's regulatory body - FIA, which is a tough role. As the 62-year-old told Motorsport.com (in a different interview), FIA never gets credit for anything, only rubbish. He continued:
"They [the British media] didn't accuse me [of anything], but they keep on [going]. And do I care? No. Why? Because what are they after?"
"They are after selling and getting more coverage for them[selves]. Of course, yes. But they have no power over me and over the FIA."
"With due respect to the British media or any other media, they don't have a vote. We are an independent, democratic federation. It's the world of membership that elected me. The power is with the General Assembly, not with them."
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