FIA sporting director Steve Nielsen has quit his role with racing’s governing body after less than a year in the position.
Nielsen was appointed in January to oversee and improve the FIA’s race control operations.
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His move from F1 to the FIA followed a series of controversial decisions, most notably the Michael Masi mistake which impacted the end of the 2021 championship at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Within F1 Nielsen’s appointment, which saw him work closely with race director Niels Wittich, was seen as a good step to rebuilding trust in the governing body.
As recently as August, Grand Prix Drivers’ Association (GPDA) head George Russell described Nielsen as “a really great addition” to the process, but the championship now enters the new year with a void in that position.
According to a report by the BBC, Nielsen stepped away because he did not feel the FIA is willing to make the changes he felt need to be implemented.
His departure will raise serious questions over what comes next for the FIA – the way race control administered penalties remained a talking point in the 2023 season. A reorganisation is expected to follow in the new year.
The FIA heads into the new year under a cloud caused by its knee-jerk investigation into an alleged conflict of interest between Mercedes boss Toto Wolff and F1 Academy chief Susie Wolff, which appeared to be based entirely off a single report in F1 Business Magazine.
All nine of Mercedes’ rival teams distanced themselves from suggestions one of them had raised an official complaint to the FIA.
The investigation was dropped after just two days.
The FIA, led by president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, has not yet elaborated on what prompted the investigation or what was behind the decision to go public.
Earlier this month the Wolffs said they are involved in a legal exchange with the FIA over the matter.