Ben Sulayem: 'Complexity' of FIA underestimated by public

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem says the public underestimates the complexity of motorsport's governing body's inner workings given the sheer number of disciplines it sanctions.

This weekend, President Ben Sulayem will ring in the New Year and his first twelve months at the helm of the FIA where he succeeded Jean Todt.

It was a busy commencement for the Emirati former rally driver who had to deal with the aftermath of the controversial outcome of the 2021 F1 world championship in Abu Dhabi, which included in the first months of the year an investigation into the events that marked Max Verstappen's disputed coronation at Yas Marina and a complete restructuring of Grand Prix racing race direction.

But other pressing matters for Ben Sulayem included a legal dispute over a patent covering the mandatory and wide-spread use in single-seater racing of the cockpit halo device and the presence on the FIA's books of a $20 million financial deficit, courtesy of the institution's previous administration.

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But beyond such crucial issues, an equally important undertaking, and which is still underway, is the induction of a new governance, including the nomination of the FIA's first CEO, a former Volvo executive who will oversee the governing body's day-to-day running.

However, the new management won't mean a lesser work-load for Ben Sulayem, whose "hands on" approach to his role is in stark contrast to Todt's less interventionist and laissez-faire style.

"I think people think that ‘OK, you are the President. You have the red carpet.’," Ben Sulayem explained earlier this month at the FIA's prize-giving gala in Bologna.

"I mean, there is that part of course, but then you really have to handle the issues. You cannot just run away and say OK, someone else’.

"You cannot just be dependent on others and, meanwhile, you cannot micromanage. The more you dig in, the more you can improve it.

"I think the minute we say ‘OK, we are there’ [that’s] the minute we’ll start losing and we’ll start not delivering what we have to do."

While the FIA and its 246 member organisations in 145 countries represent the interests of motoring organisations and motor car users around the world, the institution's most prominent role remains the licensing and sanctioning of Formula One, Formula E, the World Rally Championship, the World Endurance Championship and dozens of other racing series.

But again, Bel Sulayem isn't sure the public has a clear understanding of the FIA's responsibilities and ramifications.

"People don’t understand, sometimes," said the 61-year-old. "There are a lot of people behind it, the FIA is complex.

Why? Because if you look at another game, like football, look at the regulations there, it is one or two sizes of football, there is one goal size, there is one size of a football, and everybody’s watching.

"But look at the FIA. When you look at karting… imagine the regulations that goes into it. Imagine all the disciplines – forget Formula 1, go to rallying and so on.

"The challenge is every day is a challenge, but an enjoyable challenge."

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