I understand drivers swearing in a race when emotions are high, but do Max Verstappen and others not think it’s wrong in a press conference? – Tom
Everyone will have their own opinion on this topic. And it would be wrong to presume where the drivers stand on this – collectively or individually.
However, Verstappen has said what he thinks, and said many of the drivers share his views.
Verstappen feels the punishment he was given for swearing in a news conference was “ridiculous” and the whole situation is “silly”.
“If you can’t really be yourself to the fullest, then it’s better not to speak,” he said. “But that’s what no one wants because then you become a robot and that’s not how you should be going about it in the sport. You should be able to show emotions in a way. That’s what racing is about. Any sport.”
Verstappen made it clear that his decision to give the shortest possible answers in news conferences after qualifying and the race in Singapore was a direct consequence of being given a community service penalty for using a swear word on the Thursday.
“There is of course no desire to then give long answers there when you get treated like that,” he said, when speaking to journalists in a separate session away from the official press conference room.
This is a complex topic.
Some will believe that swearing in any circumstance in a news conference is wrong.
Others might feel that dropping in the odd fruity word now and then if the context is right and it feels natural is authentic, and that F1 drivers should be able to behave in that manner.
It’s only what many people would do in normal speech, it could be argued, after all.
For many years, F1 drivers have been accused of lacking personality and being boring.
So it’s understandable if they find it ironic and confusing that these actions are now being taken. Especially in the context of the successful Netflix Drive to Survive series, in which swearing is normalised, even celebrated, in the case of former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner.
The problem for Verstappen in particular and the drivers in general is that FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has made this another one of his hobby horses – just as with jewellery and underwear and other things in the past.
Ben Sulayem wants less swearing over team radio, never mind less in news conferences.
There are senior figures, inevitably, who behind the scenes have quietly pointed out the issues with some of Ben Sulayem’s own public utterances.
The interesting question now is how the drivers will respond when they arrive for media day on 17 October at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.
The drivers collectively will need to come up with a position, because you can be sure it will be one of the first items on the list of questions for most members of the media, especially to Verstappen.
