FIA reshuffle no indication Michael Masi was "wrong" - Mattia Binotto

Ferrari - Masi

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FIA reshuffle no indication Masi was "wrong" - Binotto

F1 will have new race direction in 2022

Ian Parkes & Topher Smith

Wednesday 2 March 2022 13:30

Mattia Binotto doesn't believe the reshuffling of personnel within the FIA means Michael Masi "did wrong" after his removal as F1 race director.

Masi came under fire for his handling of the 2021 season finale and was subsequently moved into a new role within the FIA as Niels Wittich and Eduardo Freitas took over as race director in an alternating role.

Drivers up and down the grid have come out in support of the Australian with Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen particularly outspoken over his removal, the reigning world champion slating the FIA for throwing Masi "under the bus".

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Asked for his views on the matter, Binotto replied: “I think it is not a departure. It is a shuffling within the FIA so Michael Masi is still there in a different role and I think his new role will be as key as the previous one.

"I am pretty sure he will do a good job as he did [as race director]," said Binotto.

“On the sporting regulations I think it is always a matter of continuous improvement, trying to understand how we can do better and I think that the FIA decided to make some changes.

“I think we need to trust their independence, the way that they act. They had time to analyse, time to discuss.

"It was discussed at the F1 Commission when all the team principals were there at the time, it was discussed at the world council so it is not just a change which has been decided in one day or in one night.

“At the end, I think it [the FIA] is going always for the best and it doesn’t mean that Michael did wrong.

"I think it is simply that you always need to improve and I think they simply decided there is a different set-up that can bring for a better situation in the future.”

No need to "revamp" sporting regulations

With the sport seeing overhauls in its technical and financial regulations, there are those who feel the sporting regulations also need a change following a number of controversial and inconsistent situations last season.

But downplaying the need for change, Binotto said: “I don’t think there is a necessity to revamp the sporting regulations, it is a matter of continuous improvement and optimisation.

"I think that the current regs, for many years, have been discussed, agreed, have been modified, have been optimised.

"We have got a governance in place where we are discussing through a process at first a sporting advisory group but then as well the F1 Commission.

“So I think that there is a clear process in place that is robust, that has existed for years.

“Honestly, there is always room for improvement. I think that is important. I think we can always learn from the past but revamping is, I believe, not the right word."