After the meeting with the FIA in recent days, Jost Capito, the CEO of Williams, was keen to defend Michael Masi’s decision-making at the 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi, regarding the car’s controversial handling of procedures. security, which swung the drivers’ title from one camp to another on the last lap.
As the FIA conducts in-depth discussions with the teams and drivers as part of the investigation, Masi can count on the support of Capito, whose driver Nicholas Latifi was behind this safety car intervention.
“I know Masi quite well, I’ve met him several times,” Capito explains.
“I had discussions with him, I had discussions with the commissioners, I had a lot of discussions especially with Emanuele Pirro. What are the issues, what are the difficulties that the commissioners and Masi have to go through during a race? And I see it’s very, very difficult.”
“But I think they’re handling it very well, given everything that’s going on. And Masi is very professional, and I don’t believe anyone in the FIA or the stewards has a preference, at any time, for a team. or a driver. It’s absolutely 1000% sure and certain.”
Capito believes the decisions Masi made that day were all correct and above suspicion.
“You have to make the decisions quite quickly and immediately, and that decision is seen by millions or billions of people live. It’s a huge pressure. And I think they handled it very well.”
“What is not fair in my opinion is that there can be a conversation with the team principals or anyone with the team with the race director during the race.
“The broadcast is not the problem. It’s the conversation itself. It’s the same as in football when the coach tries to argue heatedly with a referee during a match. He can get sent off for that.”
“Furthermore, these decisions during the race should not be able to be challenged or reviewed followingwards.”
“In football, if there has been a penalty, the penalty will not be removed following the game if it seems that it was not fair. I think that needs to be clarified by the rules and that is the only something that I think needs to be done. Masi wanted the championship to be decided on the track and it was the right decision.”
When asked if he thought the decision was fair to Hamilton and Mercedes, who mightn’t fight back from Red Bull (come home and put on soft tires hoping for a safety car withdrawal), Capito is frank.
“I would say it’s like life. If you say sport is absolutely fair, what is fair? Is life fair?”
“Life isn’t fair all the time. I think Masi did very well under the pressure he was under and the decisions he made.”
“He wanted the championship to be decided without anyone else involved, that’s why he let the cars through. They were first and second before the safety car, so they should be in that position to decide the championship – that’s completely understandable. Everything was according to the rules in place.”
Is Capito’s position towards Masi the general position of other team managers? He refuses to answer the question recalling “that an investigation is underway”.