The FIA has officially declared the start of a “deep review” into last year’s contentious Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, and the outcome will be unveiled at the first race of the 2022 season in March.
The investigation into the events of December 12 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which left Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton “disillusioned” with Formula One, will focus on the deployment and handling of the controversial safety car.
Michael Masi, the FIA race director, has received a lot of criticism for his role in the late Safety Car fiasco, with some sources claiming that his job has become untenable as a result of violating Safety Car rules.
FIA released a statement officially declaring the commencement of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix inquiry.
“Following the decision of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris on 15 December 2021, the FIA administration, under the leadership of Mohammed Ben Sulayem, has started the detailed analysis of the events of the last Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.”
“The FIA president launched a consultation with all F1 teams on various issues, including this one.”
“On January 19, an item on the agenda of the Sporting Advisory Committee will be dedicated to the use of the safety car.”
“The following stage will be a shared discussion with all F1 drivers.”
“The outcome of the detailed analysis will be presented to the F1 Commission in February and final decisions will be announced at the World Motor Sport Council in Bahrain on March 18.”
“FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has asked secretary-general sport and recently appointed single-seater director Peter Bayer for proposals to review and optimise the organisation of the FIA F1 structure for the 2022 season.”
