In the beginning of March 2022, Formula 1 announced that the Russian GP race in Sochi was cancelled.
“It means that Russia will not be hosting any competitions in the future”, F1 wrote in a statement.
When FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem meets the Swedish press during a conference on hate speech in Stockholm, he does not give a direct answer to whether Russia can return to the calendar, but does not rule it out.
There is a difference between the commercial part of Formula 1 and motorsport. And we must follow the Olympic committee's guidelines, we respect them. But let's hope. Do you think the war will last forever? I hope not, he says to TT.
He says it was not his decision to exclude the country.
Russia was a commercial decision. It was not FIA that made it. To be clear, it was FOM (Formula One Management) that did not want to drive there and there was pressure on FIA to mark against Russia.
The Russian automobile federation is still in FIA and Russian drivers are allowed to compete under a neutral flag. Ben Sulayem emphasizes that he does not have a mandate to exclude the country.
I will not break the rules for anyone. When it suits people, they love democracy, but it has two sides and when the other side comes out, then it's not as popular, he says
”Of course, we think about safety”
A race that was not cancelled was in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in March 2022. An oil depot was attacked 16 kilometers from an F1 track that hosted a race the same weekend. BBC and Sky Sports reported that the teams and drivers felt pressured to participate. A description Ben Sulayem does not share.
We never forced drivers to drive the race in Saudi Arabia. Drivers had a choice and they had a long meeting. We said: “If you want to leave, leave. We can drive you to the airport.” But no one wanted to leave.
This year, the season's second-to-last race will be held in Doha, Qatar, which was exposed to an Israeli air strike just a few hours after the interview.
Of course, we think about safety, but we do not mix in religion and politics. It is stated in our rules. We think about the people and motorsport, says Ben Sulayem.
When we build our foundation for a choice (of place to drive a race), we do it together with our event organizers. We will never take our people to a dangerous place where we see a threat to them.
”If we are to pick at every country”
FIA has previously been criticized for hosting races in countries with significant human rights deficiencies, including Bahrain, Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia – three countries that have serious problems with press freedom according to Reporters Without Borders' (RSF) press freedom index.
Ben Sulayem does not see this as a reason to strike the races.
They have press freedom, but the media must also understand that you cannot go to countries and just fabricate news. You have to respect them, he says, despite the fact that five of the races on the F1 calendar 2026 completely lack press freedom according to RSF.
He further means that there are problems in many countries.
If we are to pick at every country and say “I will not go there because of this or that”. Then I think we might have to go back to Sweden, so we can get everything, says Ben Sulayem.
The next Formula 1 race will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan, on September 21.
Mohammed Ben Sulayem, born November 12, 1961 in Dubai, is the president of the international automobile federation and former rally driver.
He was elected president of FIA in December 2021, after having been vice president since 2008.
He has been criticized for his leadership, including allegations of sexism and attempting to silence critical voices and restrict the drivers' freedom of speech.
”Just because the media, from another country, accuses someone of something, we will not follow it”, says Ben Sulayem.
”I do not care what people think, I only care about the future of the sport”, he says further about the criticism.
In the election for the presidency on December 12, he will face Tim Mayer.
