Scuderia Ferrari have confirmed that there is a slight “concern” regarding the decision made by the FIA to appoint a former advisor to Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff.
A few weeks ago it was officially announced that experienced lawyer Shaila-Ann Rao would act as the Interim FIA Secretary General for Motor Sport, thus replacing Peter Bayer, who has left his positions as Secretary General for Sport and Formula 1 Executive Director.
In a statement, the FIA said at that moment: “The FIA warmly thanks him for the achievements he has contributed to the development of motor sport over the last five years. The FIA wishes him all the best for the future.”
Shaila-Ann Rao Rao, who was FIA Legal Director from 2016-2018 before joining Mercedes as General Counsel and then Special Advisor to Wolff, took over on an interim basis.
Scuderia Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto admitted that he had always enjoyed working with Bayer, but added that he accepts the FIA’s decision to make some changes, as a result of the arrival of new president Mohammed Ben Sulayem.
“I think we enjoyed certainly the collaboration with Peter. He was always very transparent, fair with the teams, and [he was] rational. He’s got certainly a lot of competencies and experience. But, there is a reorganisation within the FIA, and it’s down to the new president to decide his own team. We fully respect the choices. We are accepting and, looking at the future, trying to make sure that we’re properly collaborating, and making sure that the FIA becomes stronger and stronger.” – the Ferrari boss explained.
At the same time, when asked if Ferrari had any issues or concerns with the appointment of Shaila-Ann Rao, given the fact that she previously worked as a legal director of the Mercedes F1 Team and special advisor to Toto Wolff – Mattia Binotto admitted that he does, while adding that Ferrari trust the FIA has the ability to make sure there will be no conflict of interest.
“Certainly, it’s a concern. She’s a great person, she’s got a lot of experience. She will certainly be capable of doing the job, I’m pretty sure of that. It’s a concern, but only a concern. I think it’s down to them to make sure that there will be no conflicts of interest at all, to [do things] properly, and it’s down to the president to ensure it, and [I’m sure] they will do it. As Ferrari, it’s a concern, but I am sure [that] through the behaviours, through the decisions, they will prove it’s a wrong concern.” – the Ferrari boss explained.
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Mercedes boss Toto Wolff feels Shaila-Ann Rao will have a positive impact at the FIA, whom she previously worked for as Legal Director between mid-2016 to the end of 2018.
“The FIA is changing its structure and organisation, and then the president has to make his decisions and we certainly shouldn’t interfere into any of the decisions. I think he has a vision about where he wants to have the FIA and if part of that is a change of organisation, we need to respect it. For Shaila-Ann, she was at the FIA before she joined us. She was chief executive officer of one of the largest sports agencies before, and the positive of having Shaila-Ann in this position is she’s one about governance and transparency. She’s a lawyer. I think this is something we have always criticised in the past, that things weren’t always as transparent and as clear for the teams. This is one of the key topics she will be trying to implement. And that is good news for all of the teams.” – the Mercedes boss concluded.
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