FIA Allows Russian Drivers Back into F1
The FIA, the governing body that administers top-level motorsport series such as Formula 1, has confirmed it has reversed its ban on Russian and Belarusian drivers competing in its series. Here's why it's caused massive controversy and whether it's the correct decision from the FIA.
Video Transcript
I saw this story over the weekend going over the fact that the FIA now apparently has lifted restrictions on Russian drivers and teams in motorsport, and that of course includes the big series like Formula 1, Formula E, and the World Endurance Championship, WEC.
And among many, many others like, of course, things like WRC, like rally, and all the junior formula as well in the world of motorsport.
And when I saw this story, I initially thought, "Mm, I don't know.
This is not exactly the most reputable source here.
Is this true?"
I was gonna do some research on Monday morning and have a look and see what I could find when it came to it.
But Jawad, the legend himself, who you know from the regular kind of news updates we get here on the channel, he already looked it up for me, and he says, "Yes, this is true.
The FIA have done this."
They've not shouted about it, with very obvious reasons, and it's something that has been mooted, has been talked about for a long time now.
I remember covering a similar story saying that the FIA was considering this all the way back in 2024, two years ago, but crucially, only two years after Russia stepped up their invasion of their neighbors Ukraine.
That is the whole reason behind the current ban.
Now, there was before this a ban on Russian athletes as well in motorsport when it came to representing the Russian Federation.
They could still compete.
If you remember our lord and savior, Nikita Mazepin, from 2021, you would know that, yes, he competed.
I mean, inverted commas, "competed."
Didn't really compete, let's be honest with you.
He was absolute dross in that Haas.
Made Mick Schumacher look like an absolute world-beater in that car, which turns out was pretty hard to do.
I mean, you look at Kevin Magnussen, how he very much schooled Schumacher after he got into the car in 2022.
You know the levels we're talking about here when it comes to these people.
But he did compete in Formula 1, albeit under no license.
I mean, i- I'm sure he had a Russian license, a Russian Super License to be able to compete, but he didn't collect any points for Russia.
Now, that was, of course, before the invasion got stepped up.
That previous ban was down to the fact that they cheated during the Winter Olympics in Sochi in 2014.
Yes, the same Sochi where, of course, the Russian Grand Prix used to be held because, of course, the Russian Grand Prix got canceled from 2022 onwards.
And there have been calls for this to happen for a while because there are some people who argue that, well, it's unfair on these athletes.
They don't necessarily espouse the regime over in Russia.
They might well condemn it.
Now, of course, in the case of Mazepin, his dad, Dmitry, is very much a part of the Russian regime.
He's a typical oligarch.
So to say that Mazepin was not a part of the Russian regime I think would be very incorrect, and I think it was the right thing for Haas to terminate his contract ahead of 2022, and also to do the same thing when it came to the Uralkali sponsorship that was on the car.
Although, again, there was some big controversy when it came to that, and also Mazepin's contract as well.
There were all kinds of court rulings over in Switzerland, and it was a whole mess.
So that was a very contentious issue.
But would you say that Daniil Kvyat was a part of the Russian regime if he came back to Formula 1, for example?
Now he, of course, has competed in motorsport series in the meantime.
I think he was in World Endurance Championship, but he did so under an Italian license.
Even though he's Russian, he spent a long time of his life, a decent part of his life, in Italy, so he competed under an Italian license.
Then you've got people like, Robert Shwartzman.
He used to compete as a, as a Russian athlete in Formula 2.
Got to F2, he didn't quite get to F1.
I think he did actually get to do some practice sessions back in the day.
But you'll notice when he did that, he did so under an Israeli license, which, you know, depending on how you look at it, might be even worse.
We're not gonna get into that political firestorm right here.
But they were allowed to compete under that license instead, but not as a Russian athlete instead.
But now this ban has gone away.
Is this the right thing to do?
Well, if the whole reason behind banning Russian events, behind banning Russian athletes competing for Russia, and the same also applied to Belarus as well, but Belarus obviously has got nothing going on when it comes to motorsport.
Can you think of a single Belarusian driver?
I certainly can't.
Although, interestingly, Mazepin could qualify for that because I believe his dad, Dmitry, was born in Belarus, but again, that's a side issue there.
But if the whole reason behind banning them in the first place was because Russia invaded Ukraine, stepped up that invasion, which it, by the way, had been going on since 2014, it wasn't like it just came out of nowhere, it was very much an escalation of the conflict as it were.
If the whole reason behind banning them and banning those events was because of that invasion, that step up in the conflict there, then, well, why have they undone this?
Because the conflict is still going on.
Ukraine and Russia are still at war, and there's not really a sign that it's gonna end anytime soon.
Now, you're probably wondering, "Well, hang on a minute.
Wait, what about the Russian Grand Prix?
Is that gonna come back to Formula 1?"
No.
No, it's not.
Not yet anyway.
It probably will in time.
It probably will in time, but the ban on Russian events, Russian or Belarusian Grand Prixs or motorsport events held in Russia sanctioned by the FIA, that does remain in place.
But if Mazepin, if, Kvyat, if another Russian athlete decides to compete in Formula 1, 2 or, or WRC or WEC or anything like that, they can now do so under the Russian flag.
Is that a problem?
Is that the right thing to do?
It's not a black-and-white situation.
But like I said, nothing has really changed.
Those two countries are still at war.
The reason they gave for doing that was because those two countries were at war, that that war was deemed to be illegal, that special military operation as Russia loves to call it.
Whatever you wanna call it, it's still going on, so why are they going and doing this?
Just 'cause it's been four years now, nothing's really changed.
So I don't really understand it personally, to be honest.
It's not a surprise the FIA have very much been quiet on this.
They have done this.
But is it the right thing to do?
Well, given their own previous logic, I would say no.
But let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
Is this the right decision from the FIA?
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