Allan McNish believes swearing by F1 drivers could be combatted by having “a quiet word” with them after the FIA tightened the rules.

Drivers now face points deductions and race bans after the FIA tweaked the International Sporting Code, with president Mohammed Ben Sulayem keen to reduce the amount of swearing from drivers.

The effort has been backed by some, with Toto Wolff a particular supporter of the push, which was widely brought into the public consciousness after Max Verstappen swore in the pre-Singapore GP press conference in 2024.

The four-time F1 champion was hauled in front of the stewards for the offence and handed community service for the incident, with Charles Leclerc also falling foul of the new rules.

McNish, a former Toyota F1 driver, three-time Le Mans winner and 2013 World Endurance champion, believes a softer approach could yield benefits.

“It is a tricky one,” McNish replied when asked by RacingNews365 for his thoughts on the issue of swearing. 

“If I take my hat off and put my fan hat on, it is the emotion, and what I do know is being a driver, it is very difficult to control that at times within the cockpit. 

“I’ve said a few bleep-bleep words and thankfully, it was never broadcast, and when you are driving, it is tough, but at the same time, you don’t always necessarily want it broadcast.

“So there are areas and times where it should be monitored and with a quiet word is a very good way [to go about things].”

The other hot topic in F1

The Scottish racer, who was most recently team boss at the Audi Formula E operation, was also questioned by RacingNews365 on another hot topic of discussion: Overtaking guidelines.

These were brought to the fore after incidents involving title rivals Verstappen and Lando Norris in the United States and Mexico City Grands Prix of 2024, with drivers meeting the FIA in Qatar to discuss the guidelines further.

No concrete proposals have been put forward, as McNish recalled a shift in approach to overtaking in modern motorsport compared to his time as a driver.

“Racing has evolved a lot, and I don’t remember any overtaking around the outside [when I raced for Toyota], because of circuits, because of tyres, because of aero and a lot of different things,” he said.

“Now, there is the opportunity to overtake on the outside, on the inside, and I wouldn’t say it was equal, but it is significantly more, and as racers, we want true overtaking. We want drivers to fight and to have to overtake.

“When they get that opportunity, if they make it in an exceptional way, we take the hat off to them, and back in my day, you could close the door quite easily without any repercussions.

“You could squeeze someone off the circuit without any repercussions, which was negative, but that was the rules of the game at the time.

“I think making sure that we’ve got the facility for good overtaking is a good thing, and I look forward to that because you always remember the big ones like [Juan Pablo] Montoya [overtook Michael Schumacher] at the first corner in São Paulo [in 2001].

“It is these types of things that we will look back on and remember.”