F1’s broken system cause Michael Masi’s sacking as Martin Brundle demands change

F1’s ‘poisoned chalice’ claimed the scalp of Michael Masi seven months ago. He was collateral damage in a scandal which exposed how broken the governance of the sport is, says Martin Brundle

Michael Masi’s Formula One sacking was the result of a broken system that needs urgent attention if the sport wants retain its integrity, according to Martin Brundle.

The Australian was fast-tracked to the role of F1 race director following the sudden death of his mentor Charlie Whiting days before the Australian Grand Prix in 2019.

He guided the sport through the volatility of the pandemic before becoming collateral damage in the shambolic conclusion of the 2021 season.

With Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen vying for the world title in Abu Dhabi, the former looked set for an eighth title before Nicolas Latifi crashed with five laps to go prompting a safety car.

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Badgered by both Christian Horner and Toto Wolff over the radio, Masi was accused of violating safety car procedure with his rulings ultimately snatching victory from Mercedes and crowning Verstappen world champion.

Angry remonstrations followed with Mercedes lodging protests and appeals before eventually yielding almost a fortnight after the race as the controversy tarnished the image of the sport.

The saga divided the drivers, experts were torn while Masi and Latifi were on the receiving end of death threats. The Aussie’s position was untenable.

Michael Masi lost his job in 2021 after Abu Dhabi

Brundle insists Masi was the right man for a job he says has become a “poisoned chalice” and that an incident like Abu Dhabi has been brewing for years.

“I’m afraid what happened in Abu Dhabi was kind of brewing up for a while and it’s such a shame because Michael was the right man for the job,” Brundle said.

“It’s a bit of a poisoned chalice. He needed some support and a few changes on his side.

“It went horribly wrong in Abu Dhabi and Michael took the can for that.”

Since Masi’s departure the duties have been shared by Eduardo Freitas and Niels Wittich who are not immune to criticism.

Most recently in Monaco the pair were criticised for delaying the start of the race for more than an hour because of predicted rain with reports suggesting they had argued behind the scenes.

The FIA introduced two director in a bid to lighten the load of responsibility however Brundle insists the system is broken and F1’s continued growth is hampering any chance of a fix.

“It’s not a job you can share,” he said. “The trouble is that in Charlie’s day it was 16 or 18 races now it’s 23 maybe 24 next year.

“One person doing all that I don’t think it’s humanly possible with all the travel but I’m pretty convinced job sharing is not the right way to go.

“It needs to be one person doing that (the race) and then the other taking away a lot of the other obligations and responsibilities of circuit inspections.”

FIA Race Director Michael Masi took over from Charlie Whiting in 2019

F1 TV RIGHTS IN 4-WAY BATTLE

The FIA will need to find a solution and fast with the sport’s exploding popularity putting those in charge under immense pressure on faultless execution.

With the USA now set to host three races in 2023, a $100m four-way bidding war to win the rights to televise F1 in America has broken out.

Netflix will battle with Amazon, NBC and ESPN - the present rights holder - for the rights, which are available from next season.

Netflix already has a close association with the sport, as the maker of the Drive to Survive documentary series, which since 2019 has taken viewers behind the scenes in the paddock.

Last month Netflix announced that it had extended its contract with F1 to film for another two seasons, and now it would appear that it is also interested in showing the races live. It would be Netflix’s first foray into live sport - Amazon has already established itself in that market with tennis, football and boxing.

NBC did show F1 in the US until the end of the 2016 season, when it decided not to renew its contract. ESPN took up the rights from the 2017 season and has made clear that it would like to continue showing the sport beyond this season, when the rights expire.

Since 2017 the F1 landscape in the US has changed, mostly due to the increased popularity brought by Drive to Survive. The inaugural Miami Grand Prix last month attracted the largest audience for a live F1 race in the US, with an average viewership of 2.6 million.

That event was a sell-out, as was the US Grand Prix in Austin in October, which had a record attendance of 400,000.

A third US race, in Las Vegas, will be added to the calendar next season.

Originally published as F1’s broken system cause Michael Masi’s sacking as Martin Brundle demands change