F1: Fired steward warns FIA is ‘running out of people to do those jobs’
Mayer said he received a text message from one of Ben Sulayem’s assistants on Tuesday that he was fired.
“For a federation that relies on volunteers being fired via text message, someone who has made a significant contribution does not reflect well on the management of the federation,” Mayer said.
He said the reason for his dismissal was that Ben Sulayem was “offended” by the contents of an appeal document submitted by Circuit of the Americas (Cota), organizer of the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.
Following the track invasion at the end of the F1 race on October 20, Mayer represented the Austin organizers at a “rights of review” hearing, which decided to fine them €500,000, of which €350,000 was suspended.
Mayer said COTA officials were “not too happy” with the verdict. A similar situation at this year’s Canadian Grand Prix prompted warnings.
Mayer, who is involved in the appeal in his capacity as a sports organizer for three U.S. grands prix, said his involvement in the appeal initially led to his removal from the Sao Paulo Grand Prix earlier this month. , and then this week he was fired as the 2025 steward.
“The official reason given was that they felt there was a conflict of interest with the FIA because of my review powers as the organizer,” Mayer said.
“But that’s not why I was sacked. Being an organizer is a role I have performed for the past 12 years to the benefit of the FIA. This is not new.
“Even though the matter was resolved quietly and amicably, he was still upset and decided to fire me. After 15 years of volunteering as a housekeeper, ten years of teaching other housekeepers, and hundreds of hours in other roles, I received a text message from One of his assistants.”
Mayer said Bin Sulayem considered an element of the right to review documents “a personal attack on him.”
“I didn’t write this part of the document, but it’s my job to present it,” Mayer said.
“I have no intention of trying to cause trouble with the FIA and I will continue to be the sporting organizer of the three US Grands Prix. This is just a minor issue and it is baffling that anyone could be so offended.”
Cotta succeeded in changing the wording of the censorship judgment, removing the finding that organizers had “failed to take reasonable steps”.
“In U.S. legal terms, this is synonymous with negligence, which is a problem for U.S. corporate bodies,” Mayer said.
“In accordance with the right to a review hearing, the stewards subsequently agreed with our view and changed the penalty to a breach of F1 Rule 26.7, which states that no one is allowed on the track until all cars have been in the pits, which is Some fans did arrive at the track.
“The president’s feelings were hurt during this process, which I thought was strange because there was no reason for his feelings to be hurt when everyone else was handling this matter in a professional manner.”
