F1’s deadliest sin: greed

The FIA was founded in 1904 to promote safe racing in motorsports and regulate sports from F1 to MotoGP, but what is the most important factor in keeping these extravagant pinnacles of motorsports up and running? Money. The FIA makes its money via super licenses, fines, and calendar fees, but recently, some of the measures seem a bit over the top.

The headlines in the world of F1 were full of Max Verstappen’s fine during the Singapore Grand Prix in 2024 after he swore during a press conference. His car the week prior had not been up to standard and as expected he complained about it during an interview on the Thursday of that week. Later, he was called into the steward's office and asked to do ‘some work of public interest’ as stated the international sporting code. Max saw this as ‘ridiculous’ and on Saturday’s post-quali interview, he would only respond in short, snappy answers before continuing the interview outside. In December of 2024, he served his community service at a grassroots development event in Rwanda.

Max is not the only one to be fined either. More recently, Carlos Sainz was fined at the Japanese Grand Prix for being late for the national anthem after suffering from stomach problems. The regulation states that the violation is due to ‘failure to attend official ceremonies’, however, Carlos was only late by a matter of seconds but was still fined €10, 000. He had been to the onsite doctors that week and prescribed medication for a stomach issue but the FIA seemingly thought their schedule is more important than their overall wellbeing.

The money from fines allows the FIA to continue their work in regulating the safety of the drivers in all motorsports categories and one of the officials Nikolas Tombazis confirmed that the money goes towards safety and grassroots sports rather than ‘Christmas parties’. That being said, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem can fill his garage with luxury cars worth $75 million in total with stars such as a Ferrari F40, McLaren Speedtail, Aston Martin Valkyrie, and many, many more. So is all this money going to the right causes?

Another way the FIA can make money is through calendar fees, where tracks pay the FIA to be on the Formula 1 calendar. One notable tack in my eyes is in the entertainment capital of the world, Las Vegas. The Grand Prix debuted in 2023 and is a street track, driving past iconic hotels, casinos, and the sphere. The event cost $500 million to put on and lots of that money was made back through ticket sales, which flew off the shelves in its first season, however, ticket sales came much slower last year with tickets to practice and qualifying sessions still available days in advance to the event. The most expensive ticket burned holes in pockets, costing $5 million to watch the race from the Caesar Palace Hotel. The track also isn’t the most convenient for the Nevada locals or guests. Roads had to be closed on the busiest streets of Vegas, hotel prices skyrocketed so hotels capitalise on the event and trees were ripped from the ground to fit in grandstands.

Many drivers disagreed with the showmanship of the race with Max Verstappen’s openly critical comments calling it ‘99% show’ and ‘commercial’ as well as Lance Stroll saying it could ‘lose the purity of F1’ and Lando Norris saying that he isn’t ‘the biggest fan’ of putting on a show for the racing. And a show it was. In 2023, the drivers’ names were called out by Bruce Buffer before the driver's parade. And let’s not forget when they were lifted onto pedestals as if they were some sort of gladiators. But anything for entertainment, right? Are you not entertained?

The grand prix, whilst being a massive spectacle, also managed to pull in 30 new American sponsors and brought in almost $100 million dollars. The profit must have been worth it as its contract was extended, though it expires this year so we will wait and see if it is resigned beyond 2025.

It does seem to me that F1 is becoming a game of profit rather than passion. If we regulate how the drivers act and speak, we lose the purity of formula 1, to the point where we may as well just have robots in the cockpit. The fines do contribute to a much larger picture in keeping our beloved sport going and our favourite drivers safe, however, they don’t feel proportional to what they are for.