Formula 1 | GPDA President Alex Wurz defends Masi
Alex Wurz has supported Formula 1 race director Michael Masi.
The Australian, having succeeded Charlie Whiting following his death in 2019, has been the subject of criticism throughout this very intense 2021 World Championship. And his latest decision, relaunching the race in Abu Dhabi when the safety car procedures were not fully respected, made it possible to switch the drivers’ title from one camp to another.
« Following in Charlie Whiting’s footsteps was hard enough, » says Wurz, former F1 driver, motorsport consultant and GPDA president.
« The way the season came to a climax has also been so difficult. »
« By broadcasting these messages on the radio, the FIA is also in this process of openness and transparency, but I see a very fine line. If I were them, I would go back a bit. »
« For this information on the affairs between the team managers and the race management, I would do what Charlie did and I would not broadcast it. It is not much different from before, but the situation often has been on a razor’s edge this year, with polarization between the two camps. «
Wurz finally believes that Masi « had done nothing wrong » in Abu Dhabi.
« Not with the current sporting regulations, not with their contradictions from one article to another. There are situations and paragraphs which can be interpreted in one way or another. »
« This is what led to these ambiguous situations. But it has always existed in sport, where referees, who are human, make decisions in fractions of a second. »
« Overall it was an extremely difficult situation for a race director with the pressure from social media and the media, but I consider Michael’s performance to be extremely solid. He is very familiar with the sporting regulations. »
