Perez under the impression FIA Race Director Wittich was "sacked"
F1 News
Sergio Perez believes former FIA Race Director Niels Wittich was sacked. In an announcement earlier this week, the FIA thanked Wittich for his work as Race Director in Formula 1 after he himself decided to take up a challenge elsewhere. The German seemed to suggest he was sidelined, and now Red Bull driver Perez seems to be under the impression that Wittich was sacked.
Wittich became yet another high-profile name to leave the FIA. He joined Sporting Director Steve Nielsen, technical director Tim Goss, and CEO Natalie Robyn. On Thursday, Paolo Basarri, the FIA's compliance officer, joined the growing list.
After incidents during the Grands Prix in Austin and Mexico City, the rules around racing and overtaking became the topic of conversation in Formula 1 amongst pundits, fans and drivers. There have also been other controversial moments relating to the FIA in recent months, including drivers swearing in press conferences, which saw Verstappen get a community service penalty and Charles Leclerc get a (relatively) small fine. During a conversation with Banorte, Perez was asked for his thoughts on the rules and recent controversy.
"In sports, there's always someone who agrees and someone who doesn't. Sometimes, I think that right now there's a bit of a lack of control. In fact, they just fired the race director, Niels. So now we're going to have a new race director. So it's going to be interesting. I think we need stability. The drivers, the teams in general," Perez said.
Thoughts on the GPDA statement
A story on Wednesday said Wittich's poor relationship with the drivers was the reason for his departure. For instance, he reportedly insisted on severely punishing drivers who swore, talked about fireproof underwear, and were not allowed to wear jewellery. These issues were also reflected in the GPDA's statement, which was published as an open letter. Perez gave his thoughts on the open letter.
"I think that’s [GPDA statement] good. The truth is that we are making it more public because in the end we are in a generation where we understand how important we are. We are, in the end, only 20 drivers in the world and it is important that we are heard as drivers. Formula 1 has grown a lot. Everyone is looking out for their interests and, in the end, they have neglected the driver a lot," Perez made his thoughts clear on the issue.