Red Bull team boss Laurent Mekies has revealed that he was once tasked with revising the super license system. The Frenchman worked at the FIA between 2014 and 2017. Jean Todt, then president of the motorsport federation, instructed him to tighten the requirements for obtaining a super license. He wanted to prevent even more teenagers like Max Verstappen from making their debut in Formula 1.
Before Mekies joined Ferrari in 2018, he was the safety director at the FIA. There, he was closely involved in drafting the current rules for obtaining a super license. In a recent episode of the Red Bull podcast ‘Talking Bull’, he shared that his first task was to prevent another Verstappen from appearing on the grid. “When I joined the FIA, Max had already received a super license at the age of 17,” he recalled.
This immediately gave Mekies a remarkable assignment: “The very first thing Jean Todt, who was still president at the time, said to me was: ‘You know, this young guy, Max, got a super license at seventeen. That’s ridiculous. People will wonder how someone can not yet have a driver’s license for public roads, but is allowed to drive a Formula 1 car. Look into it and create a new structure for the super license, because this cannot happen again.'”
Points System
The result was the points system that is still in effect today. Drivers must accumulate at least forty points within three years and be at least eighteen years old to race in Formula 1. “Thanks to Max Verstappen‘s talent, we now have a completely new system, including a minimum age,” confirmed Mekies. “It’s a good thing he doesn’t know that I was actually trying to slow him down at the time,” he concluded with a laugh.
The current system does occasionally allow for exceptions. For instance, Kimi Antonelli was granted permission to test with Mercedes before his eighteenth birthday in preparation for his debut. Similarly, Formula 2 talent Arvid Lindblad was allowed to clock test miles at the age of 17. The rules have been adjusted several times over the years, but continue to be a topic of debate. The system came under fire again when IndyCar star Colton Herta announced that he would be racing in Formula 2 in 2026 – as this is the only way he can accumulate the required points.
