by 
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has sacked another senior member of one of F1’s top sporting commissioners, Tim Mayer, the son of McLaren co-founder Teddy Mayer.
Ben Sulayem, 63, was reportedly unhappy with some comments made by promoters of the United States Grand Prix following the invasion of the track by fans during last month’s race in Austin, for which organizers were fined €500,000. .
Mayer, 58, also worked for the promoters of the United States Grand Prix alongside his role as an unpaid steward for the FIA, which he held for 15 years, before becoming co-chairman.
Mayer reportedly recused himself after US GP organizers were summoned to meet with stewards to explain how 200 people, coming from the stands opposite the pit lane, had scaled a fence and fallen two meters before clearing a fence and a barrier. separating them from the track while the cars were still on a recovery lap after the end of the race.
Mayer’s departure will add to the sense of growing chaos within the FIA which has seen an exodus of employees over the past 18 months, many of them falling out with Emirati Ben Sulayem, a former driver rally.
FIA Formula 1 racing director Niels Wittich is the latest high-profile employee to be made redundant. He was fired three races from the end of the season after a falling out with Ben Sulayem.
Wittich was replaced at the last race in Las Vegas by Rui Marques, recently racing director of Formula 2 and Formula 3.
Ben Sulayem has been embroiled in a series of controversies since his election just weeks after the controversial 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in which Verstappen won his first world championship.
Then racing director Michael Masi lost his job a few months later for what was described as “human error”, but Ben Sulayem’s relationship with Mercedes, and in particular with Toto Wolff and the seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton never really recovered.
The Emirati was also taken to court in France by Susie Wolff, the chief executive of the all-female F1 Academy series, following the FIA’s short-lived conflict of interest investigation into her relationship with her husband.
Wittich’s abrupt departure is the latest in a long string of similar departures over the past two years. Telegraph Sport reported last year on the acrimonious departure of former FIA acting general secretary for motorsport Shaila-Ann Rao, who sent a letter alleging numerous instances of “unacceptable behavior” from Ben Sulayem before his departure in December 2022.
A senior member of the FIA ethics committee resigned soon after following a disagreement over whether to investigate Rao’s allegations.
Last December, athletic director Steve Nielsen resigned after less than a year on the job. Her departure follows that of Deborah Mayer, head of the FIA Women’s Commission. In January, lead engineer Tim Goss stepped down as technical director of the single-seaters. And in May, Natalie Robyn left her role as external managing director, after just 18 months in the role.
Telegraph sport contacted the FIA and Ben Sulayem for a response.
Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving deals and more.
