Inside the FIA-F1 driver summit in Qatar: What was the outcome?

Formula 1’s drivers sat down with FIA representatives in Qatar on Thursday evening for what the governing body described as a “frank, open and collegial” discussion on the sport’s controversial racing guidelines.

The annual meeting carried extra weight this year following a string of contentious incidents that have reignited the debate around how racing is policed.

Introduced in 2022 at the request of the drivers, the guidelines were designed to bring clarity to overtaking and defensive racing. They have been revised twice since, yet questions over their effectiveness have only intensified during the 2025 season.

Thursday’s summit also included the three driver-stewards appointed for the 2026 campaign.

Five Incidents Put Under the Microscope

According to the FIA, five cases from this season were reviewed, starting with the three-car clash at Interlagos involving Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc.

Piastri’s in-race 10-second penalty split opinion across the paddock, with many drivers arguing the decision was unjust – even though the stewards insisted it aligned with the guideline framework.

The meeting also revisited two major crashes: Carlos Sainz’s collision with Liam Lawson at Zandvoort, for which Sainz originally received a penalty that Williams successfully overturned, and the Monza incident between Oliver Bearman and Sainz that resulted in a penalty for Bearman.

Both cases have fueled concerns that a rigid, position-based interpretation of the guidelines fails to reflect the natural flow and nuance of wheel-to-wheel racing.

Drivers reiterated a long-held criticism: that the current document encourages competitors to “race to the apex” simply to satisfy the wording, potentially creating artificial or unsafe scenarios.

Track-limits controversies were also discussed, notably the Mexico debate over whether Leclerc or Max Verstappen “left the track and gained a lasting advantage”, as well as Lando Norris’s attempted move on Leclerc in Austin, which raised fresh questions about how to judge overtakes where a driver briefly leaves the track.

FIA Emphasises Consistency – but Admits Limitations

While no firm changes were announced, the FIA stressed that internal analysis supports the guidelines’ overall effectiveness.

In its statement, the governing body noted that “data from the past three seasons” indicates the document “has contributed to greater consistency”, adding that teams’ own studies back this conclusion.

It also reminded competitors that the latest version “has been reviewed and agreed with the GPDA”, underscoring the drivers’ role in shaping the system.

The governing body outlined four key takeaways from Thursday’s exchange. The first was a “clear preference” for stewards to delay certain decisions until after a race when necessary—particularly in cases where input from the drivers involved may lead to a more accurate judgment. Sainz had publicly pushed for such an approach earlier this year.

Read also:

• Verstappen’s verdict on F1’s racing guidelines: ‘I’d shred them!’

The FIA also said there was consensus that no guideline document can cover every scenario, reinforcing the importance of having experienced driver-stewards on each panel.

Despite some drivers calling for fully permanent stewarding teams, the FIA did not indicate whether that idea formed part of the discussions. The topic has been contentious, with the FIA president and the GPDA previously disagreeing over who should fund a permanent corps.

The remaining points focused on safety-related matters: stronger adherence to yellow-flag procedures and exploring additional safety measures, as well as a review of blue-flag rules to potentially clarify expectations for lapped cars.

Whether the meeting will prompt revisions to the driving-standards guidelines for 2026 remains uncertain. For now, both sides appear aligned on at least one point: that stewarding must continue to evolve if Formula 1 is to balance consistency, fairness and the freedom to race.

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