The FIA’s widely-debated new rules on swearing claimed their first victim last weekend.
But, perhaps just as significantly, one case of high-profile profanity did not incur the stewards’ wrath. Why were the two situations handled differently?
Hyundai World Rally Championship driver Adrian Fourmaux had the unfortunate distinction of collecting the first fine for swearing since the FIA issued new guidelines on penalties for “misconduct” last month.
“We fucked up yesterday,” remarked Fourmaux in an interview for the WRC’s official streaming service Rally.TV. The stewards responded by fining him €10,000 (£8,300) and leaving a further €20,000 fine hanging over him in the event of a further infraction.
The total €30,000 is as specified in the FIA’s guidelines for non-F1 world championships. F1 drivers can expect fines totalling €40,000 for the same infraction.
Fourmaux was punished under article 12.2.1.l of the International Sporting Code, which forbids “any misconduct.” This is defined as “the general use of language (written or verbal), gesture and/or sign that is offensive, insulting, coarse, rude or abusive and might reasonably be expected or be perceived to be coarse or rude or to cause offense, humiliation or to be inappropriate.”
According to the stewards, Fourmaux told them “he used the words in a colloquial and descriptive way [to mean] that he had made a mistake” and “he apologised as he did not mean to offend or insult anyone by using those words.”
| Become a RaceFans supporter and
Meanwhile in another FIA world championship – Formula E – a driver launched into an expletive-ridden mid-race tirade. Cupra driver Dan Ticktum fired off at least 10 swear words in a series of messages on his radio after being told to pit due to a technical problem.
This, however, did not attract the attention of the powers-that-be. The FIA therefore appears to be making the same distinction between drivers swearing during their official media duties and doing the same on their radios during the races.
Whether or not the FIA is right to clamp down on swearing, doing so when drivers are competing in the heat of the moment would be harder to justify. That said, some driver radio messages in the past have attracted penalties from the FIA. Most notably, Yuki Tsunoda’s half-suspended €40,000 fine for using an ableist slur last year and Sergio Perez’s official warning for calling the stewards “a joke” the year before.
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem may despair at some drivers’ tendency to swear irrespective of the context, but the first indication is the new regulations brought in during the off-season is not about to lead to a rash of penalties for sweary radio messages.
That said, the enforcement of these penalties has not always been consistent. Last year out of four occasions when F1 drivers swore during press conferences two were penalised (only one with a fine) and two were overlooked. And as the penalty for multiple violations of article 12.2.1.l includes a “one-month suspension plus deduction of championship points,” drivers would be unwise to risk it.
| Become a RaceFans supporter and
Formula 1
Browse all Formula 1 articles
