Niels Wittich, the former F1 race director, has admitted that his exit from the FIA came as a ‘complete surprise’ and that he is yet to receive a satisfactory explanation. He was made a race director in 2022 after Michael Masi left the FIA in the wake of his controversial handling of the previous year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Wittich initially shared the role with Eduardo Freitas before he was ultimately selected as the sole race director. However, in the build-up to last year’s Las Vegas Grand Prix, it was announced that he would be stepping down with immediate effect. It came as something of a surprise, prompting confusion over the nature of his exit and whether he was actually sacked by the FIA.
Appearing as a pundit on Sky Germany during pre-season testing, Wittich was quizzed on his version of events and claimed that he was blindsided by the governing body.
“I saw no indications that anything wasn’t working or that there was any reason to make a personnel change,” he said. “So, in that sense, it all came as a complete surprise. To this day.”
Wittich added that ‘no one has been able to give me an answer’ as to why he was asked to leave his role. The FIA has never publicly stated any formal reason behind his departure.
When drivers raised concerns last year, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem said at the time: “It’s none of their business.”
“To this day, no reason has been given to me,” said Wittich. “The last time I spoke with the FIA president was last year in China, so I can’t say that we had any kind of falling-out or a negative relationship. I had relatively little contact with him.”
Express Sport has reached out to the FIA for comment.
Announcing his departure last year, the organisation stated that Wittich had stepped down ‘to pursue new opportunities’. They added: “Niels has fulfilled his numerous responsibilities as race director with professionalism and dedication. We thank him for his commitment and we wish him the best for the future.”
Wittich was quick to dispute the FIA’s claims, though, insisting that he was not the one who decided to leave. He was quoted as saying: “I have not resigned.” It was also reported that he was informed of his dismissal shortly before the FIA released their statement.
