Peter Windsor on this ex FIA Steward: 'You’ve got to be quite selective'
F1 News
- Savannah Lenz
Before it was announced that he would no longer be an FIA steward, Johnny Herbert was set to oversee the Australian Grand Prix. However, the former F1 driver and the FIA decided to part ways. On Cameron Cc, Peter Winsdor shared his thoughts on the situation.
Windsor agrees with having former drivers as stewards; in fact, he thinks it's a good idea. However, he also thinks that the FIA needs to be clearer when it comes to their expectations and what it means to be a steward. He said, "Having the principle of having a driver as one of the stewards is a good one, but you’ve got to be quite selective."
Windsor thinks that what the FIA should do is "clear" and "logical"
To be professional, Windsor thinks that the stewards need to get paid for their time. He also says that they need to be careful with what they say. "Need to be paid a bit more than they're getting because the reason it is all a bit scratchy is that, as far as I know, they just basically get expenses paid.
He continued, "Most of these guys are pretty high earners, and in theory, their time is quite valuable, so if you want to have them doing something properly in a very professional way, you got to pay them. If Johnny's out there doing other stuff, whether it be, I don't know, TV or punditry, for betting companies or whatever it is, then you know he can't mix that with being a steward, that's pretty clear."
On the topic of the FIA and their stewarding rules, he said, "I'm surprised the FIA don't make that one of the requirements the minute they engage a driver to play a stewardship role because you know you've got to be down the middle, you've got to be objective and you got to be very 'with the rule book.'"
Winsdor concluded, "Not saying Johnny isn't [in] favour with the rule book, but you know you can't be out there expressing opinions about a current driver and then expect to be taken seriously as an FIA steward. That's pretty logical to me, but again, you have to blame the FIA in a way for not making that pretty clear from day one."
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