Bernie Ecclestone claims F1 risks losing it’s ‘human side’ with FIA swear ban after Max Verstappen fiasco
Bernie Ecclestone believed that Formula 1 was losing the 'human side' of the sport after penalizing Max Verstappen for swearing.
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Bernie Ecclestone and Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)
The FIA was subjected to a lot of backlash on social media after penalizing Max Verstappen for dropping the F-bomb. Multiple individuals believed that the sport had gone too soft and didn’t need such binding rules for the drivers. Amidst the ongoing fiasco, the Ex-F1 owner Bernie Ecclestone noted that the sport was losing its ‘human side’ following the community service penalty on Verstappen.
Max Verstappen had continued to mock his penalty on multiple occasions after the Singapore GP. Bernie Ecclestone reckoned that the ‘wrong direction’ had been taken after FIA banned the use of swear words on team radio. Additionally, the F1 supremo believed that the sport had become too surgical regarding the rules and its enforcement.
I think the wrong direction has been taken, we’re becoming too surgical about everything, about the rules, the enforcement of regulation, about everything.
Bernie Ecclestone said on the German TV station RTL
Due to such problems, Ecclestone claimed that the sport had lost the ‘human side’ of it. The 93-year-old recalled the language of drivers on track back in the early days of Formula 1. However, Ecclestone did clear that he didn’t promote swearing on team radio but believed it to be ‘normal’ for high-performance athletes to express themselves on track.
We’ve lost a bit of the human side of F1. You know well what the language of the drivers was like back in the day. Obviously, I’m not saying that people should swear, but it’s normal that, sometimes, people want to express themselves more clearly without worrying too much about the language they use.
Bernie Ecclestone added
Mohammad Ben Sulayem in a ‘very difficult’ position
Mohammed Ben Sulayem also received a lot of hate following FIA’s decision to enforce strict rules against swearing in the sport. The FIA president even responded to the hateful comments from the people. Hence, Bernie Ecclestone sympathized with Ben Sulayem and claimed that the latter was in a difficult position. The Emirati was acting according to the whims of the people and not by his real thoughts on the situation.
I believe Mohammed Ben Sulayem is in a very difficult position because he is seen a bit differently by the drivers. I think he is currently doing what he feels he must do and not expressing his real point of view on the matter.
Bernie Ecclestone noted
The sport has continued to receive multiple changes with the growing seasons. The best part about Formula 1 is the community of fans and drivers who do not hesitate to speak up against such changes. FIA will have to reconsider its decision in the coming few weeks and continue to ease up the problems for drivers on track.
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Aditya Pandya
(1439 Articles Published)