Ex-F1 Race Director Michael Masi lands a new role after FIA debacle
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Michael Masi
After the controversial 2021 Abu Dhabi grand prix, a lot of people including fans of the sport demanded the removal of Michael Masi as the F1 race director. His actions had a huge impact on the title fight which some bitter fans just weren’t able to process and are still rumbling about it to this day.
Since his decision of letting the lapped cars go made it easier for Max Verstappen to catch up to Lewis, some felt that it was unfair to the British driver.
When Nicolas Latifi crashed his williams in the final few laps of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Michael Masi deployed a safety car which was the go to procedure. Although it was unanimously decided by the teams that the race will not end with a safety car if the conditions are satisfactory.
With this being in mind, Masi let the lapped cars by but only the ones between title contenders Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen which people thought was weird. Since Max made the decision to pit during the safety car period, he was on fresh softs to attack Lewis who had old hards since he didn’t pit. That was a grave mistake from his and his team’s side. Further on Max went on to overtake Lewis to win his first world championship.
After the outrage by some bitter fans, FIA revealed that Michael Masi was removed from the role of race director ahead of the 2022 F1 season. A new race control structure was also put forth in order to prevent what happened at Yas Marina.
The Aussie announced in July that he had left the FIA to be closer to his family in Australia where he found his new job. Michael will be replacing Neil Crompton who is existing the board and will become the new chairman of the Supercar commission which oversees sporting and technical rules in the Australian series. The Aussie has a few thoughts to share on his situation.
“I’m very proud to have been appointed to this role,” states Michael Masi as he lands a new role in his home country
“I view this role as continuing the amazing work already done by Neil and the Commission to lead Supercars into a brand new era with the introduction of the Gen3 Chevrolet Camaro and Ford Mustang,” he said in a statement where he described his excitement about the role.
“I’m very proud to have been appointed to this role and look forward to working with the key stakeholders in the sport to ensure the future is an exciting one for our teams, partners, sponsors and most importantly the fans,” he continued.
It is a fresh new start for Michael Masi as he targets to make the sport better after his time in the FIA. It is a great opportunity for his as he will be able to remain close to his family while doing what he loves. The possibility of the Aussie coming back to his original position in F1 doesn’t seem probable anymore.
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Varad Joshi
(940 Articles Published)