Ex-FIA president: “Wolff and Horner called me in Abu Dhabi; I can’t interfere”
Todt, the ex-Ferrari team principal at the time of Michael Schumacher’s dominance, was the outgoing president of the FIA at the time of the 2021 season-ending race in Abu Dhabi.
Race director Michael Masi’s incorrect application of the Safety Car rule infamously resulted in Max Verstappen’s first F1 championship, and ended Lewis Hamilton’s hopes of a record eighth.
"I didn't do anything, it's not the role of the president of the FIA,” Todt told Corriere della Sera.
“Referees must be autonomous. Have you ever heard [FIFA president Gianni] Infantino say ‘Here there was a penalty, and here there was not’.
“In the documentary [‘The Method’ on French TV] you can see that I'm watching that race in the country house with the crew.
“Horner and Wolff call me and to them I reply: ‘I can't interfere, it's the responsibility of the stewards and the race director.’”
The Mercedes and Red Bull team principals controversially spoke to race director Masi as the drama unfolded.
The rest, as they say, is history.
That race was the last before Mohammed Ben Sulayem took over as FIA president before the 2022 season.
Masi, meanwhile, lost his job at the FIA but, last week, returned to the F1 paddock for the first time since his notorious overseeing of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
James was a sports journalist at Sky Sports for a decade covering everything from American sports, to football, to F1.
