The FIA has intervened and made some adjustments to the regulations so that it can address and punish individual political statements made by drivers or teams. The motorsport body intervenes after the number of statements has been increasing considerably in recent years.
From 2023, drivers will still be allowed to make political statements, but not on their own. Drivers such as Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel have done this on several occasions and ways in recent years (helmet, shirts, etc.), but will first have to request permission from the FIA from 2023. This mainly concerns political statements during the podium ceremony after the race and during press conferences/interviews. It is not clear from the regulations what the possible penalty can be if a driver does not comply with this. Usually this comes down to a fine for the driver in question.
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Explanation FIA
The FIA explains in Article 12 of the International Sporting Code what the ban on political statements without the permission of the FIA will entail. What kind of statements should we think about? “Generally making and displaying political, religious and personal statements or remarks, in particular contrary to the general principle of neutrality promoted by the FIA, unless approved in writing in advance by the FIA for international competitions or by the relevant ASN for national competitions within their jurisdiction.”
Tackle
The FIA also makes it clear that it wants to continue to tackle discrimination and to continue to fight for equal human rights. “The FIA will promote the protection of human rights and human dignity and will refrain from discrimination based on race, colour, sex, sexual orientation, ethnic or social origin, language, religion, philosophical or political opinion.” This fits well with an earlier statement by Formula 1 and FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem after both drivers and employees within Formula 1 were verbally attacked during the season.
