Will Michael Masi Resign? Enraged Fans Sign Petition That The F1 Race Director Should Be Sacked

Michael Masi should resign; the F1 racing fandom has been shouting these four words everywhere across all the social media platforms. Is Massi stepping down from his position? 

Since Charlie Whiting’s death, Michael Masi has served as FIA Formula One Race Director, Safety Delegate, Permanent Starter, and Head of the F1 Technical Department.

Masi, like Whiting, is in charge of overseeing the logistics of each F1 Grand Prix, including checking vehicles in parc fermé before a race, enforcing FIA rules, and regulating the lights that signal the start of each race.

Masi formerly worked as the deputy race director for the Australian V8 Supercars and the Hong Kong ePrix, and he was set to take over the FIA Formula 2 and Formula 3 championships.

Will Michael Masi Resign? Petition By Outraged Fans Explained

It is not sure that Michael Masi will resign from the F1 Race Director. But fans sure wish he would.

The fan has many complaints, and they are not happy with the ways Micheal Masi is handling things.

Fans complain that mistakes have been overflowing this season. One of the fans’ frustrations is that the judgments made this year did not fall under the purview of the regulations.

Decisions were moved back and forth in a manner that suited the FIA. Equal sanctions were applied for activities that should have resulted in wholly different punishments. In exchange, the same errors were penalized differently.

This year has seen far too many errors and rulings with wrong penalties. The rules were set, but the restrictions were not followed as they should have been. In sports, it is possible for bad judgments to be made. 

Michael Masi Origin & Nationality Explained

Michael Masi holds the nationality of Australia. Masi was born in 1979 in Sydney and is of Italian origin.

Masi, who grew up in the Fairfield and Canada Bay neighborhoods, first studied marketing at TAFE before employment in racing.

He began his racing career as a volunteer for Super Touring teams while still in high school. He served as deputy race director in the Supercars touring car series and Rally Australia.

In 2018, he was named Formula Two and Formula Three deputy race director by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile and F1 race director Charlie Whiting’s deputy.

He took over as Formula One race director when Whiting died unexpectedly just before the 2019 Australian Grand Prix.

What Did He Do?

Michael Masi’s decision to expedite the safety car protocol to complete the race’s last lap proved to be a gift in disguise for Max Verstappen, who lined up alongside Lewis Hamilton behind the Aston Martin safety car on the final lap.

Verstappen was able to pass Lewis Hamilton thanks to fresh tires placed during the pitstop before the final lap. On the other hand, Lewis Hamilton had wanted to reach the finish line on a pair of worn-out tires.

The dispute arose when Masi first stated that lapped drivers would not overtake the safety car, only to reverse his judgment a few seconds later.

This isn’t the first time Michael Masi has been embroiled in a scandal this season. He was responsible for the cancellation of the Belgian Grand Prix earlier in 2021.

He attempted to start the race by suspending the racing clock, but only a few safety car circuits were called off.

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