F1 race director Masi open to changes to penalty rules

FIA race director Michael Masi says a review of Formula 1's sporting rules could be considered, but only for 2020 and with the unanimous consent of the teams.

Two weeks after the controversial penalty handed to Sebastian Vettel in the Canadian, it was Daniel Ricciardo's turn to be on the receiving end of the stewards' wrath following the Aussie's actions at Paul Ricard.

As a recurring theme, driver penalties for rejoining the track in an unsafe manner or for gaining an advantage for exceeding track limits have raised questions about the soundness of the rules and their impact on wheel-to-wheel racing.

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In France last weekend, the Grand Prix Drivers Association, chaired by Alex Wurz, held a lengthy meeting to debate the necessity of tweaking F1's sporting rules.

Masi, who met with the drivers at Paul Ricard as part of his weekend pre-race briefing, is open to changes to the sporting code for 2020.

"My view is we have got a rule book there, and the rule book is the one we have got for the entire 2019 season," said Masi.

"I don’t think it would be wise in any sport to change anything mid-year. But is it something that you can look at, like with any rule book? Absolutely.

"I think we are always constantly evolving with everything."

However, in accordance with the FIA's statutes, any potential changes to the regulations would need the unanimous support of the teams

"I think if all the teams agree with it, it is no different to any other set of regulations," Masi said.

"But there is also the ISC (International Sporting Code) that has provisions in it that are also used from a code of driving conduct side.

"That has its own process which isn’t just F1 specific, it is for the entire sport.

"But it is something that we will look at collectively and jointly."

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