FIA chief Mohammed Ben Sulayem blames ‘toxic social media’ for Michael Masi’s exit

Mohammed Ben Sulayem asserts the FIA had 'always been supportive' of ousted race director Michael Masi, instead blaming the 'toxic social media' for his exit.

FIA chief Mohammed Ben Sulayem blames ‘toxic social media’ for Michael Masi’s exit

Former FIA/F1 Race Director Michael Masi

It’s fair to say that the 2021 season finale was one of the most controversial races in recent history. Maybe even of all time, especially as the controversy came from a direct intervention from the FIA. The season itself didn’t have any shortage of strife either. It was certainly one of the most exciting F1 seasons, but that came with its own baggage. Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton had both been fantastic – and went into the final race level on points. A showdown for the ages.

Despite some early scuffles, Hamilton seemed to be running away with it. That is, until Nicholas Latifi’s crash and the subsequent safety car. Verstappen dived into the pits, while Hamilton stayed out – hoping to preserve track position, as the expectation was that the race might end under a safety car anyways. But it did not, as Michael Masi, the race director, intervened. As he said to Toto Wolff: “It’s called a motor race. We went car racing.”

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But it didn’t follow the FIA’s safety car procedure. In a normal situation, it should have stayed out another lap while all the lapped car runners went around, not just the ones between the two title contenders. The fallout from this incident was terrible – and it’s fair to say it cost Masi his job. The Australian and his family appalling abuse and death threats on social media. FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem blames this ‘toxic social media’ abuse for Masi’s exit.

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As per GPFans, when speaking at the Dakar Rally, Ben Sulayem said of Masi’s departure: “It was also his choice. I’d been talking to him at the beginning. There were human errors there, and I felt that he also wanted to just not go further, because of what he got from social media, the toxic social media. I spoke to him, and it was unfair also for him. The FIA was always supportive.”

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FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem also received threats

FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem

Social media toxicity has become quite an issue for Formula 1. Apart from the direct message abuse and threats, fans also fight each other in factions. Almost every day, you can find people arguing about events that happened more than a year ago. Even the drivers and teams (Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes, in this particular example) seem to have ‘moved on’ from it. It’s gotten so bad that the FIA have even adopted AI technology to combat this, in addition to the ‘Drive it Out’ campaign.

Other members of the FIA (apart from Michael Masi) have also received abuse and threats, including Mohammed Ben Sulayem himself: “This is the same thing that’s happening to Silvia [Bellot, FIA steward], again to some of our members: threats. I got some threats also, to reverse the results, but I didn’t take them seriously. But now we stand against the toxic social media that will affect our sport. I am a big believer that if we don’t take a stand, we might find the damage will be beyond repair for our sport in the future.”

Everyone can agree that the incredible amount of toxicity on social media is harmful. For F1 in particular, it gives the sport a bad image. It remains to be seen just how effective the F1 and FIA’s campaigns and initiatives against toxicity turn out to be. It starts at your own home as well: Be more mindful about how your words and actions affect other people, even over a screen.

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