George Russell and Lewis Hamilton agree as F1 drivers have lost confidence in FIA

F1 drivers sent an unfastened missive to the FIA explaining immoderate of their concerns astir the sport's governance and person been near frustrated aft they received nary response

George Russell said Formula 1 drivers are "fed up" with the FIA's enactment aft their missive raising concerns with the governance of the athletics was ignored.

After the past contention successful Brazil, the Grand Prix Driver' Association [GDPA] enactment retired a corporate statement successful which the operator criticised the governing assemblage and its president, Mohammed ben Sulayem. In it, racers demanded the FIA dainty them "like adults" and slammed the president's "tone and language" erstwhile helium demanded racer halt swearing.

Ahead of this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix, the archetypal F1 lawsuit since that unfastened missive was enactment out, GPDA manager Russell said the FIA had not responded to it. And helium made wide some his ain and his chap drivers' disappointment with the deficiency of engagement connected the matter.

He said: "If we consciousness we are being listened to and immoderate of the changes we are requesting are implemented, due to the fact that we are lone doing it for the payment of the sport, past possibly our assurance volition increase.

"There are a fig of drivers who consciousness a spot fed up with the full concern and it lone seems to beryllium going, to a degree, successful the incorrect direction."

Russell went connected to accidental the GDPA had decided to enactment retired specified a connection for the archetypal clip successful 7 years because, during Ben Sulayem's tenure arsenic FIA president, drivers felt similar they were not being listened to capable and that the concern had reached a constituent wherever thing needed to beryllium said.

The Brit added: "Getting things to alteration oregon promises upheld seems somewhat much challenging. Maybe the FIA oregon the president did not recognise however earnestly we each felt. Over the people of 20 races this twelvemonth and adjacent past twelvemonth we spoke astir a fig of topics.

"All the drivers, we consciousness beauteous similar, we cognize what we privation from the athletics and the directions it has been heading and we consciousness we privation a tiny U-turn connected a fig of topics and we privation to enactment unneurotic with the FIA connected this and we felt that has not been happening astatine each from the president."

Speaking successful the aforesaid property conference, Lewis Hamilton backed his Mercedes team-mate and said: "It conscionable shows that, much than ever, the drivers are united, which is possibly thing you person not ever seen successful the past. There are immoderate things that request addressing. The FIA request to beryllium amended astatine moving and collaborating with us."

And Haas operator Kevin Magnussen referred to much harmonious times nether erstwhile F1 racer manager Charlie Whiting, who died successful aboriginal 2019. The Dane said: "He was idiosyncratic we felt truly connected to and we were truly being listened to, but present we consciousness it is much america against them and it should beryllium a person connection. We tin assistance a lot."