Director of the GPDA, George Russell, shared his thoughts on the updated driver swearing ban befote the Imola GP that was “a little bit ludicrous in the first place.”
On Wednesday, the FIA updated their controversial swearing rules after many drivers expressed concerns after its introduction in January 2025. The FIA lowered the fine on the first offence, stewards can fully suspend a penalty, and introduced rules about speech in “controlled” and “uncontrolled” environments.
Russell expressed his views on the swearing ban in the past, however he expressed to the media before the Imola GP, “it should never have been there in the first place.”
“We’re talking about a situation where things have been reverted because it was a little bit ludicrous in the first place. Of course, we’re happy to see that it (has been changed), but it should never have been there in the first place, if that makes sense.”
“So it feels a bit wrong to be thanking (them for) the changes when we shouldn’t have been in that place to begin with.”
Russell hoping for better dialogue with the FIA
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem collaborated with drivers under FIA to collaborate on the rule changes. A director of the GDPA, Russell, shared before the Imola GP that he “had no correspondence” from FIA leadership.
“We’ve still had no correspondence with anyone from the senior level at the FIA. So yeah, it’s all a bit suspect.”
When asked about why there was no correspondence, Russell answered, “That’s a good question. It seems more challenging than it should be really, but we’ve all put our views forward.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s gotten to a point of no return, but you at least want to see willingness from the other party. I think we feel we’ve put our views forward and we want to have conversations and dialogue and there’s only so much you can ask.”
Change in leadership
Russell supports WRC Champion Carlos Sainz Sr.’s bid to run for FIA President. Sainz Sr. is the father of current F1 driver Carlos Sainz. Russell sees the bid as “a brilliant recipe” for father and son.
“It could only benefit the sport having Carlos with the inside knowledge of Formula 1 from a driver’s perspective and then Carlos Sr’s knowledge from motorsport generally. It could be a brilliant recipe,” Russell said ahead of the Imola GP
When asked about the conflict of interest between the Sainz’s, Russell said “You’re so far sort of removed ultimately from a technical standpoint. It’s down to the technical people within the FIA to be the rule makers.“
“The president in years gone by has probably been far less involved than what we’ve seen recently and far less visible.”
“We always knew who the president of the FIA was, especially with Jean Todt, but you’re working in the background, you’re not working in the forefront. So I don’t see there ever being a conflict.”
