Formula 1 president Stefano Domenicali says the sport will 'never put a gag on anyone'

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Stefano Domenicali speaking astatine a quality conference

Formula 1 president Stefano Domenicali says the athletics volition "never enactment a gag connected anyone" amid ongoing contention implicit state of speech.

Governing assemblage the FIA is facing a backlash implicit a caller regularisation that prohibits "personal, spiritual and governmental statements" without written consent.

"Everyone wants to talk," said erstwhile Ferrari squad brag Domenicali.

"So to person the level to accidental what they privation successful the close way, the amended it is."

Williams' Alex Albon this week revealed F1 drivers are "all concerned" astir the FIA's evident tendency to curtail their state to talk retired connected societal and governmental issues.

He said the caller regularisation was "confusing" and called for clarity from the FIA "on what they are trying to archer us".

Albon believes it is simply a "responsibility" of drivers to "make radical aware" of issues, and said the content was that the FIA was moving distant from the pro-diversity We Race As One run that F1 arsenic a athletics has promoted since 2020.

Domenicali, speaking to the Guardian, added: "We person a immense accidental due to the fact that of the presumption of our sport, which is much and much global, multicultural and multi-valued.

"We are talking astir 20 drivers, 10 teams and galore sponsors, they person antithetic ideas, antithetic views.

"I cannot accidental 1 is right, 1 is incorrect but it is right, if needed, to springiness them a level to sermon their opinions successful an unfastened way.

"We volition not alteration that attack arsenic a sport.

"Athletes tin beryllium precise affectional and passionate astir immoderate things and they request to sermon that constructively with radical they trust."

Domenicali said helium expected the FIA to clarify its presumption successful the adjacent future, "in presumption of respecting definite places wherever you cannot bash it".

"I americium definite the FIA volition stock the aforesaid presumption arsenic F1 but they are portion of an Olympic federation truthful determination are protocols to which they person to abide."

However, a fig of elder sources person said that their content is that F1 and FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem person antithetic positions connected the taxable of allowing drivers to talk out.

The past 3 years successful F1 person been marked by drivers becoming progressively vocal connected diversity, radical and biology issues, led by seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton and the now-retired four-time champion Sebastian Vettel.

All person taken portion successful F1's We Race As One initiative, and respective person already condemned the FIA's caller ruling.

Last week, satellite champion Max Verstappen said that it was unnecessary, and Alfa Romeo's Valtteri Bottas said helium "didn't recognize wherefore they privation to power us".

And astatine the Alfa Romeo squad motorboat connected Tuesday, Bottas' team-mate, China's Zhou Guanyu, said of the FIA's approach: "I don't deliberation it is the close mode to bash it.

"We are quality truthful we tin accidental the worldly we privation to but we are not against anyone. We are conscionable saying the information oregon trying to beryllium the existent idiosyncratic wrong and out, truthful I deliberation we should person the close to accidental what we want."

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