“People are now taking the dramatic version of the story, it seems Masi has been sacrificed”- Jan Lammers says Michael Masi walked away, not sacked
Follow Us
The new era of Formula One is truly here with a new set of technical regulations in the cars and rules for the 2022 season. There have been new roles added to the higher positions in FIA to avoid Abu Dhabi mishaps again and to promote fair play without controversy over winners for the season or even the race.
FIA recently confirmed Michael Masi’s replacement as FIA’s race director with a shared circle among individuals, World Endurance Championship race director Eduardo Freitas, and ex-DTM race director Niels Wittich. Although, instead of being pushed to the side, Lammers suspected that Masi did not want to continue in the new structure.
The new rotating race control duo of Freitas and Wittich will be assisted by Herbie Blash, the former deputy to Charlie Whiting, and the permanent Senior Advisor to the FIA race directors at Formula One. With the ongoing changes, Michael Masi is expected to take a different position within the FIA while a new VAR-style system is being launched which is similar to that of the one seen in football.
Jan Lammers, Dutch GP sporting director, talks about Michael Masi in an interview and said, “People are now taking the dramatic version of the story, in which it seems Masi has been sacrificed, I think it goes much further than that, when you see how it has been filled in now. It may well be that Michael said that he didn’t like it this way and they couldn’t work it out.”
Also read: ‘Lewis Hamilton would finish last in a Williams or a Haas,’…
“It’s not like Masi got the sack and suddenly someone else does it. It is not that simple. It is just a totally different structure and Masi has not been assigned to that new structure. I don’t want to speculate about the underlying reason, it’s so easy to get it wrong,” he added.
When asked about the Race control structure and whether they made the right call, Lammers said, “That’s not for me to judge. It seems that the conclusion is that at the moment there is less to be left to one man. Of course, many things have changed. Firstly, Jean Todt has been replaced by Mohammed Ben Sulayem [as FIA president] and now Masi is replaced by a broader team, with two alternating race directors.”
“Above that is Herbie Blash who oversees that. They are monitored from Geneva to make sure the rules are followed. It is more the conclusion that crucial decisions like this should not be left to one man. Hence, from now on, it will be done from a much broader panel. I think this is better in terms of structure.”
Lammers comments on the VAR-style system:
One of the major concerns of this system is driver’s responses to the F1’s Virtual race control room as it does have its own critics in football as well. “I think anything that contributes to clarity and ensures things are no longer open to interpretation is a good thing,” Lammers commented.
“We have to see how this is experienced by the drivers. How this will eventually work out is of course a question,” he added.
The car launch for the season has almost come to an end with only Alfa Romeo left to lift the covers off their new 2022 challenger.
Also read: “It’s the fight between Lewis Hamilton and George Russell,” Jenson Button believes Mercedes hold…
Stay Updated!
Mitali H Shah
(113 Articles Published)