“It was a difficult decision to take”- Ferrari expresses support to the FIA’s decisions and Michael Masi following the Abu Dhabi GP

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has shown support toward the FIA’s decisions following the controversial Abu Dhabi GP.

Ferrari has voiced its support to the decisions made by the FIA in response to the Abu Dhabi GP. The FIA decided to remove Michael Masi from his role and offer him another job within the FIA.

The governing body has decided to replace Masi with two race directors, Eduardo Freitas and Niels Wittich. They will share the job on alternative weekends through the 23-race calendar. The race directors will also be supported and supervised by a permanent advisor, Herbie Blash.

On top of the personnel changes, the FIA will introduce a ‘Virtual Race Control Room’.

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto said, What happened in Abu Dhabi has been over-discussed, over-analysed [for] months and weeks.”

“The fact that it took so long, I think it shows us the complexity of the matter. There is nothing obvious. What happened there, I think the fact there is such complexity, it’s very difficult to say anything was made wrong or right or [whether there were] any mistakes or not.”

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Ferrari has sympathy for Masi

Furthermore, Binotto showed support to Masi and said that the pressure of the situation was completely understandable at the Abu Dhabi GP.

“Certainly, I think, when you are taking such decisions, you are always under a lot of pressure in the heat of the action,” he said. “I think that is true for the FIA, true for the teams, whoever is working in that difficult environment. Because the pressure is certainly very, very high.”

“The communications from teams to the Race Director certainly [didn’t] help. So overall, it was not an obvious situation. [It was] a difficult decision to take. I think we all need to fully trust the FIA for its independence and its capacity to take the right decision to move forward,” he commented.

“In that respect, we can only support it so, as Ferrari, we support certainly the decision of its new chairman (Ben Sulayem) and the entire FIA. I think we [Ferrari] certainly will continue to collaborate [with the FIA] for a better, improved future for our racing.”

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