F1 made headlines for a lot of wrong reasons before the 2024 season began. The line of controversies also continued into March when FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem was accused of two big counts of wrongdoing. First was his alleged interference in the results of the 2023 Saudi Arabian GP. The second was his alleged attempt at canceling the 2023 Las Vegas GP. While he has still kept mum over the former matter; he has finally broken the silence over the latter.

The Las Vegas Grand Prix was the highlight of 2023 in terms of the hype around it. If the FIA canceled it for whatever reason, it could’ve been detrimental to their expansion plans. Though not all proceedings went smoothly, the race proved to be a success. However, in the first week of March this year, a whistleblower claimed that Ben Sulayem tried to “find fault with the track in order to withhold the license.”

3 weeks after those accusations, the FIA President has finally addressed the matter. “The president of the FIA is the one who signs the homologation for the new track, or for all the tracks,” he told GP Racing, as quoted by Soymotor. “I supported him. I could have said no, [because It wasn’t ready in time for the inspection]. But as soon as my team said it was safe, and because I’m a driver, I care about the well-being of the drivers and the people around them, our staff and the stewards, I did it.”

He even highlighted the “disastrous” repercussions that could’ve followed if he hadn’t taken the right course of action.

Mohammed Ben Sulayem highlights the ‘disaster’ that would’ve followed the cancellation of the Las Vegas GP

F1’s Expansion plans into the United States have been going successfully. With 3 races already on the calendar in Miami, Austin, and Vegas, the sport is capturing entirely new audiences. But can you imagine the magnitude of the setback that would’ve followed if Sin City wasn’t ready for the race in time? Let Mohammed Ben Sulayem answer this question.

“If I had said no, it would have been disastrous for F1,” he opined. “But it would have been legal. But I’m cautious because I love this sport. After all, we’re in the same boat. We may have different missions. But we’re in the same boat. We can’t let the sport sink.”

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Well, that’s one controversy less for the pinnacle of motorsport to deal with. Hopefully, no new ones pop up and wheel-to-wheel racing remains the focus for the rest of the year.