Last month, the FIA issued an update to the International Sports Code on Driver Misconduct, outlining an escalation table of penalties available to racial managers to punish behavior. Updated Appendix B Drivers are currently facing fines, race bans and even penalty points deductions for a variety of activities, including “fraud” and oaths. Potential penalties include series-based escalate scales, with the heaviest fines for F1 drivers.
There is the first penalty under this updated Appendix B, which serves as a warning to the world of motorsports.
World Rally Championship It concluded Rally Sweden, the second event of the 2025 season. Following the Power Stage, Adrian Formaux, the driver of the 16th Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team, conducted a live interview with rally.tv. In that interview, Fourmaux referenced the mistakes he made in the previous stages. “I had a beautiful stage, ruts are really difficult,” he said. “I think it's difficult to have a good time. There's a lot of cleaning at first. I did f*** yesterday. [referring to a stage 11 incident]. ”
Shortly after that interview, Fourmaux was summoned to meet with the race steward. As stated in the Stewards Decision report, Fourmaux said, “I explained. He had mentioned the mistake he made the previous day (Saturday, February 15th, 2025), and in the sense that he made the mistake. He mentioned the use of words in colloquial and descriptive ways. He apologised because he had no intention of using those words to anger or insult anyone.”
As stated in the decision, the steward “reminds of the FIA stance not only on inappropriate language but also on oral/physical abuse, reminiscing to drivers and team representatives, particularly political, religious and personal statements. and create/display comments. General principles of neutrality promoted by the FIA under its law.”
Under updated Appendix B, the stewards fined 4maux 10,000 euros, and an additional 20,000 euros was suspended over the course of one year.
Additionally, the steward has in-depth outlined the reasons behind the FIA's recent changes to the sports code.
Stewards and the FIA have admitted that the word in question has unfortunately become a common colloquial phrase. However, it is essential to emphasize that this does not diminish the fact that such languages are widely regarded as blasphemous and are inappropriate in public discourse, including live television broadcasts. Public platforms are not only targeted to audiences who are familiar with these colloquial languages, but can also reach them
The diverse cultures and individuals that such words may find offensive. Motorsport is a global sport and attracts people of all ages and cultural backgrounds. Some of them could misinterpret or attack these phrases. Given this, the FIA remains committed to ensuring that inappropriate languages are not used in public forums, including visual and audible media, press conferences, and social media. Furthermore, as public figures and role models for future generations of athletes and fans, sportspersons are expected to maintain standards of professionalism and respect in communication.
The Steward outlined how Fourmaux's language violated updated Appendix B.
Within this context, the 2025 FIA International Sporting Code (FIA ISC) will make violations in this case “…general use of the language (written or verbal), gestures, and/or attacks, insults, rough, rude, or Defined as a sign of abusiveness. The FIA was introduced in Appendix B (published January 22, 2025) in the international sports code. Steward Penalty Guidelines [penalize] Violations of certain articles in the International Sports Code, including violations above.
The stewards have found several mitigation factors. First, this was the first example of FourMaux that violated the updated sports code. Secondly, English was not his native language and the statement in question was not intended to be offensive. Third, the statement from Fourmaux was self-referenced, intended for his own performance, not another driver or race official. Fourth, he immediately apologized, and finally, “assures” staff that the four would recognize greater attention in the future.
These mitigation factors have put an additional fine in halt.
With the Formula 1 season approaching, the updated Appendix B, which begins with the F1 75 live launch event on Tuesday, is a close look at the potential factor this year.
Fines for illegal activities were a major topic during the 2024 Formula One season. Tsunoda was fined 40,000 euros (half of that was suspended) for using a capable slur while speaking on team radio. Charles Leclerc was fined 10,000 euros, half of which was suspended for vows at a FIA press conference during the Mexico City Grand Prix.
Then there was a saga involving Max Verstappen, who was ordered to provide public services for the FIA in Rwanda after vowing at a pre-race press conference at the Singapore Grand Prix. Verstappen then carts a few times following the FIA press conference, and at one point held an improvisation presser with media assembled from the official FIA press conference.
As a way to standardize penalties that racers can hand out, the FIA has issued an updated Appendix B ahead of the 2025 motorsport season.
However, these penalties range from fines for initial violations to potential suspensions and deductions of championship points for third violations. It is also worth noting that financial fines escalates depending on the level of competition as F1 drivers face the most sudden financial penalties. As we face “multipliers” of fines for each base, as outlined in the updated Appendix B F1 Driver, the first violation under this section will result in a fine of 40,000 euros and a third violation will be fined 120,000 euros.
As F1 embarks on what could be a transformative season, I wonder how fans, and perhaps drivers themselves, will implement the updated Appendix B.
Here's the first example.
