March 20th 2024.
Susie Wolff, the Managing Director of the F1 Academy, has been making headlines recently after taking legal action against the FIA. Susie, who is married to Toto Wolff, the boss of Mercedes, has been at the center of a controversial conflict of interest investigation by the FIA. This came after unsubstantiated media reports claimed that she and her husband were sharing confidential information. However, both Susie and Toto, along with Mercedes and Formula 1, strongly denied these allegations.
The couple also expressed their frustration at the lack of transparency and communication from the FIA, with Susie feeling deeply insulted by the accusations. Toto has been with Mercedes since 2013, serving as the team principal and CEO, while Susie, a former test driver for Williams, was recently appointed as the managing director of the newly-launched F1 Academy. This all-female series has the goal of getting a woman on the F1 grid by 2023.
Although the FIA promptly dropped the investigation, the damage had already been done. In a statement on her Instagram, Susie revealed that she had filed a criminal complaint against the FIA in French courts on March 4th. She emphasized the importance of standing up against improper behavior and holding people accountable, even if they try to remain silent.
This news came just as F1 was heading to Australia for the Grand Prix. On the same day, it was also announced that FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem had been cleared of accusations that he had interfered with two F1 races last year. These allegations claimed that he had demanded a penalty for Fernando Alonso be overturned at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and tried to prevent the new Las Vegas street circuit from being certified.
This controversy has not gone unnoticed by the F1 community, with Mercedes driver Sir Lewis Hamilton speaking out against the FIA at the prize giving gala in December. He criticized the governing body for questioning the integrity of Susie Wolff, who he described as one of the most incredible female leaders in the sport. He also called for a change in the leadership of the FIA, saying that they often seem to be trying to hold back progress when it comes to diversity and inclusion within the industry.
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