Michael Masi: FIA announces exit for former F1 race director
The FIA has announced that former F1 race director Michael Masi has left the sport's governing body to be “closer to his family and take on new challenges”.
The news comes seven months after the controversial ending to the 2021 F1 campaign.
Masi was dropped as race director for this season after his poor handling of the 2021 title decider between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.
The Australian failed to apply the FIA’s sporting regulations correctly, failing to allow all lapped cars to overtake the Safety Car.
As a result, this handed Verstappen a clear run at Hamilton on the final lap to overtake him and thus secure his maiden title.
The events of Abu Dhabi were investigated by the FIA and the findings led to Masi's removal.
Despite being dropped as race director, the FIA outlined that it would find a new role for Masi.
The FIA released a short statement on Tuesday afternoon, thanking Masi for his contributions since 2019.
“The FIA confirms that Michael Masi has decided to leave the FIA and relocate to Australia to be closer to his family and take on new challenges,” the FIA said in a statement.
“He oversaw a three-year period as FIA Formula 1 race director and safety delegate following the sudden passing of Charlie Whiting in 2019, carrying out the numerous functions he was tasked with in a professional and dedicated manner. The FIA thanks him for his commitment and wishes him the best for the future.”
Since Masi's departure, many drivers have been unhappy with the stewarding standards across the season.
Verstappen and Lando Norris were very critical of the new race director's harsh penalisation of track limits, while there has been scrutiny over how penalties are being awarded for various incidents throughout the year.
