Ross Brawn, Formula 1’s managing director of motorsports, has revealed they will stop team principals from being able to speak to the race director during Grands Prix next season.
It comes after Toto Wolff and Christian Horner both made their cases to race director Michael Masi during the controversial conclusion to Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix where Max Verstappen pipped Lewis Hamilton to the world title.
The Mercedes driver appeared to be charging to another championship, easily holding Red Bull’s Verstappen at bay only for a crash involving the Williams of Nicholas Latifi to change the course of events in the closing laps.
Team principals will not be able to speak to the race director during Grands Prix next season
The under-fire Masi crucially changed his mind to allow lapped cars to pass the safety car
Confusion reigned as the under-fire Masi changed his mind to allow lapped cars to pass the safety car – meaning Verstappen had a clear run at Hamilton in the final lap and, on much faster fresh tyres, made his move to claim a first F1 title.
As the chaos unfolded, Horner urged Masi to get the safety car off the track and restart the race as soon as possible to give Verstappen one final opportunity to pass Hamilton in the final lap.
But as the Dutchman overtook Hamilton in a pulsating finale, a furious Wolff could be heard yelling to Masi: ‘No, Mikey, no, no, Mikey, that was so not right.’
And Brawn has now revealed that F1 will cut off the line of communication between team managers and the race director next year.
‘We will stop this contact next year,’ the Briton told Auto Motor und Sport.
‘It’s unacceptable that team bosses put Michael under such pressure during the race. It’s like the coaches negotiating with the referee in football.
‘Toto can’t demand there shouldn’t be a Safety Car and Christian can’t demand the cars have to un-lap. That’s at the discretion of the race director.’
Ross Brawn says it’s ‘unacceptable’ that team bosses put Masi under such pressure on Sunday
There was also conversations between Masi and Red Bull on the first lap of the race when Verstappen tried to cut in front of Hamilton, only to push the Mercedes driver off the track.
Hamilton then took to the run-off area and emerged back on the track with a healthy advantage over Verstappen.
Red Bull were adamant that Hamilton should have given the place back to Verstappen, but Masi disagreed and insisted the seven-time world champion had given the advantage back by slowing down.
Mercedes immediately launched two appeals against the controversial result, one against Verstappen for allegedly overtaking under a safety car and a second claiming a breach of rules regarding race restarts following a safety car period.
Both were dismissed after the two teams spent hours in the stewards’ office, with Verstappen able to toast his title over four hours after crossing the finish line – albeit with Mercedes lodging an intention to appeal the call.
As Sportsmail reported, Mercedes will get one shot at overturning the race result and Verstappen’s drivers’ championship title – and will not be able to take their claim to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
FIA rules, that all Formula One teams sign up to, give the body’s International Court of Appeal in Paris as the only arbiter for settling disputes, meaning Mercedes will have to convince a panel appointed by the FIA to find against the FIA.
Verstappen had a clear run at Hamilton in the final lap and made his move to claim a first F1 title
Mercedes are yet to confirm their appeal against the result but have until Thursday to do so
Mercedes are yet to confirm their appeal, although the presence of a leading QC in Abu Dhabi suggests they will go ahead. They have 96 hours after the event to submit papers, meaning the case is unlikely to be heard this week.
Masi is facing further questions about his decision-making in Abu Dhabi after it was revealed that the F1 race director broke his own rules to allow a controversial finish to the race.
It has been revealed that Masi’s instructions went against a precedent he himself set last year at the Eifel Grand Prix in Germany.
At the October race, an issue with Lando Norris’ McLaren brought out the safety car, and a similar situation ensued in which Verstappen and Hamilton were 1-2, with back markers between them and just a few laps remaining.
At that race, Masi said: ‘There’s a requirement in the sporting regulations to wave all the lapped cars past.’
At the Nurburgring, all lapped cars were waved through, whereas in Abu Dhabi, only the five cars between Hamilton and Verstappen were moved out of the way, while other lapped cars were able to remain behind the leaders.
