Toto Wolff, Fred Vasseur warned over Las Vegas GP swearing،
ABU DHABI — Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff and Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur have both received formal warnings for taking the oath of office at an FIA press conference at the Las Grand Prix. Vegas.
The incidents occurred amid the chaotic opening night at the Las Vegas track after a drain cover came loose and caused significant damage to Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.
Vasseur was left upset by the incident, which forced Ferrari to fit a new engine to Sainz’s car, resulting in a 10-place grid penalty, and replace his chassis.
“We had a very difficult FP1, it cost us a fortune, we screwed up the session for Carlos,” Vasseur said.
Wolff was defending the Las Vegas Grand Prix after being asked if the sewer cover incident had been a “black eye” for F1, and he used the profanity in response to an interjection from a reporter halfway through the session.
“You’re talking about a f—— drain cover that was undone,” Wolff said. “It’s already happened, it’s nothing, it’s FP1, we have to pay tribute to the people who organized this grand prix, who made this sport much bigger than it ever was .”
Stewards of this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix have been asked to investigate comments for breaching article 12.2.1.f of the FIA International Sporting Code, which covers “any word, act or written having caused moral harm or loss to the pilot. FIA, its bodies, its members or its managers, and more generally on the interest of motorsport and on the values defended by the FIA.
The stewards considered that Wolff and Vasseur had used language “not in accordance with the values defended by the FIA”.
They added: “The FIA considers language of this type unacceptable, in the future, particularly when used by participants in the sport who enjoy a high public profile and who are considered by many followers of the sport sport, especially the youngest, as role models”. , and that in the future the FIA will not tolerate the use of such language in FIA forums by any stakeholder.”
However, mitigating circumstances were found in both cases, Wolff because he “was provoked by an abrupt interjection during the press conference” and Vasseur because he “was extremely upset and frustrated by the incident that occurred during FP1 and this language like this, by him, was not usual.
As a result, the stewards considered that formal warnings would be sufficient rather than material sanctions.
