FIA Finally Backs Off From F1 Swearing Crackdown

The war over swearing in Formula 1 is over, or has at least reached a stalemate. The sport’s governing body said Wednesday it will reduce fines and penalties for cursing. Drivers have heavily criticized the new punishments for months. 

The “base level” fine, such as swearing during a press conference, has been halved to roughly $5,600, and the increasing fines for repeat offenses and higher performance levels have also been cut. The maximum penalty is now around $16,800, whereas before it was roughly close to $135,000. Penalties can also now vary based on whether they were said in a “controlled” or “non-controlled environment,” such as speaking to reporters versus driving a car.

“As a former rally driver, I know firsthand the range of emotions that are faced during competition,” FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem said in a statement. “The improvements the FIA has announced today to Appendix B will ensure we continue to promote the best of sportsmanship in motor sport, while also giving Stewards effective guidelines to act against individuals who may bring the sport into disrepute.”

Ben Sulayem faced harsh criticism from drivers following comments where he contrasted F1 drivers and rappers. “We’re not rappers, you know,” Ben Sulayem said last year. “They say the F-word how many times per minute? We are not on that. That’s them and we are [us].”

Several top drivers including Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Sergio Pérez, and Yuki Tsunoda disagreed with the president’s comments, with some arguing the sport should eliminate the hot mics that pick up their every word during the race if they were so concerned about profanity. Lewis Hamilton pointed out the “racial element” of Ben Sulayem’s remarks.

Verstappen was ordered in September to do community service after calling his car “fucked,” and Charles Leclerc was also fined about $11,000 for dropping an f-bomb while describing a near crash to reporters. The Grand Prix Drivers’ Association said in November the fines were “not appropriate” and “our members are adults.”

The FIA continued on its anti-swearing campaign in January with new rules that came down hard on cursing, with punishments including fines, bans, and the loss of championship points.

The fines continued, leading to a driver boycott of TV interviews at the World Rally Championship. In April, the World Rally Drivers Alliance struck a deal to differentiate between the “controlled” and “uncontrolled” zones to allow for swearing during races. The next week, Ben Sulayem said he was “considering making improvements to Appendix B” for all FIA classes, which would include F1.