Lewis Hamilton has called on the FIA and its president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, to improve communication with the GPDA, the union for Formula 1 drivers. The GPDA has previously clashed with the FIA over controversial regulations regarding foul language, with the organization threatening severe penalties for offenders. According to Lewis Hamilton, it’s time for the FIA to operate more transparently and give drivers a voice within the organization.
The GPDA urged Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who has been cracking down on public swearing since last year, to reconsider his own tone and language use. The drivers also wanted insight into where the money they pay in fines goes. “I hope the FIA is having a nice meal with this money,” Max Verstappen once joked. Carlos Sainz, who had to cough up a few thousand euros for being late to the opening ceremony at the Japan GP, was also curious: “It would be nice to know where this money is going,” the Spaniard later commented.
‘Drivers Deserve a Position of Power within the FIA’
So far, the GPDA does not seem to have gained any new insights. Mohammed Ben Sulayem recently posted on Instagram that he wants to revisit the severe penalties for swearing, but there has been no actual action yet. Lewis Hamilton hopes that the drivers and the FIA will collaborate more effectively in the future, leading to quicker solutions and greater transparency. “I think the GPDA is very united,” said Hamilton during a press conference in Miami. “And I also think we want to work more closely with the FIA.”
“We all want to continue working together to improve the sport,” he added. “Over time, it has become apparent that communication can be quite challenging. Ultimately, we as drivers do not have a position of power at the FIA’s negotiating table,” Hamilton noted. “In my opinion, that needs to change. If you look at other sports with unions, they also start to play a role at some point. As I’ve said before, we don’t want to control things, but simply collaborate more and make our voices heard. It’s good to have a viewpoint from a driver’s perspective. That’s all we’re trying to offer.”
