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Laurence Edmondson, F1 Editor
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur used the word “embarrassing” to sum up the saga surrounding the FIA’s recent compliance investigation into F1 power couple Susie and Toto Wolff.
Last week, F1’s governing body launched an ethics investigation into a potential conflict of interest between Susie Wolff, who is the head of Formula One’s all-female racing series F1 Academy, and her husband Toto, who is the team principal and co-owner of the Mercedes F1 team.
The investigation appeared to stem from a report in Business F1 magazine that suggested rival team bosses had raised concerns about confidential information being shared between the couple.
However, the day after the investigation was announced, F1’s nine other teams issued co-ordinated statements supporting the Wolffs, which effectively undermined the validity of the original story and the need for an official probe.
Within 24 hours of the statements from the teams, the FIA said it had shelved its investigation, leading to a further statement from Toto Wolff saying he was in an “active legal exchange” with the governing body and awaiting “full transparency” on the subject.
Asked if he was concerned about the apparent rift between the FIA and F1’s other stakeholders, Vasseur said: “I think all of this story is quite embarrassing for the whole sport.
“The story started with an article in a newspaper — I don’t know if a newspaper is the right word — and I think in this situation when you are speaking about individuals, you have to be careful about what you are saying.
“I think it would have been appropriate from the FIA to … they needed 24 hours between the announcement and the second announcement, so it would have made sense to use that 24 hours before the first announcement to avoid any bad conclusions.”
The story emerged against a backdrop of worsening relations between the FIA and F1’s commercial rights holder Liberty Media, which has been a theme within the sport since the election of current FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem in December 2021.
However, Vasseur remains confident that F1 is in good health as negotiations over a new Concorde Agreement — the wide-ranging contract that binds the commercial rights holder, the FIA and the 10 teams together — enter their final phase.
“At least the first point after the, how do you call it, the ‘incident’ of last week, is that at least the teams were very united,” Vasseur added. “And I think it was the first conclusion for me, that we were able to act together, and it’s not very often you see that. Even Red Bull was supportive with Toto — we have to notice it!
“Honestly, I think it’s a good point for us to take a position and discuss with all of the other stakeholders. I think it’s the first time that the teams together showed something like this.
“For sure, we know each time that the Concorde Agreement is discussed it is a crucial one, but I think that we are in a much better situation today than we were five years ago. Five years ago, before COVID, when we signed the current Concorde Agreement, we have to keep in mind that we had four or five teams almost in bankruptcy.
“Today it’s not the same situation at all. The business is much more sustainable thanks to the cost cap, thanks to the prize fund distribution, and this for F1 is the guarantee of the stability for the future. Now you can always discuss about technical regulations, governance, prize fund distribution, but it will be marginal. It won’t impact the sport, it won’t impact the business, it won’t impact the Formula One.”