F1 warned FIA could step in over growing ‘health and safety’ concern
Former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley has warned Formula 1 that the current calendar cannot be “sustained forever”, over fears that the welfare of the teams could lead to accidents.
Whilst drivers travel to the races in style, the majority of each team deal with lower airline classes, making rest difficult during double and triple headers.
The physical and mental strain on the teams is becoming worse, with the calendar currently sitting at 24 races.
Priestley is concerned over the health and safety of the outfits, and can see the FIA intervening.
“I wouldn’t worry about driver welfare, I’d worry about the thousands of people up and down that pit lane,” Priestley told Casino Uden Rofus.
“The drivers are flown in on a private jet last minute, and then flown out again after the race is done. It is still tough for the drivers, but nowhere near how tough it is for the teams. Lots of teams are being forced to deal with the travelling in different ways.
“I can see a future where the FIA have to mandate teams to rotate their workers and not make them work every race of the calendar year.
“Some teams are already doing that, but there will be a point where all teams have to do it, from a health and safety perspective.”
‘Accidents will happen’
A particularly stressful period last season was the triple-header which concluded the 2024 season. The teams travelled from Las Vegas, to Qatar and then onto Abu Dhabi.
Travelling from Las Vegas straight to the Middle East has been criticised, due to the duration of the flight but also the huge time difference.
For some team members who build the garages, they are taking down equipment after a race on a Sunday, before building it again in the new location on the Tuesday.
Priestley recognises it cannot continue, with the big concern being that tiredness and fatigue could lead to an accident.
“That last triple-header was brutal, especially in the longest season of the sport’s history, to go from Las Vegas to Qatar in a matter of days was so tough,” added Priestley.
“The time differences and environmental changes have a big impact. You may think there’s a whole week between the races, but the workers finish the race on the Sunday and then have to build their garage at the next location on the Tuesday.
“It can’t be sustained forever, sooner or later accidents will happen due to fatigued or unfit teams, and then something will be changed.”
