F1 teams were left angry and frustrated when they known FIA’s surprise announcement of the sport’s calendar for 2023.
The governing body’s unexpected release of the new racing schedule took place without the teams’ approval of a triple-header for next season, which increased the fractious relationship at the heart of the sport.
The declaration of the 24-race 2023 season occurred on Tuesday without the usual collaboration with the sport’s commercial rights holder, F1.
Sources within the sport believe it has only compounded the sense of fatigue and disconnected the teams from the FIA, and one team member said FIA’s attitude was unacceptable.
The declaration of the new race calendar had been expected on Friday, but after a meeting of the world motor sport council on Tuesday, the FIA unilaterally declared it.
The 2023 season calendar features a record number of 24 races in a season that opens on 5 March in Bahrain and concludes on 26 November in Abu Dhabi.
The only problem was not a lack of notice felt within the sport but also the inclusion of a fly-away triple header of Mexico, USA, and Brazil requires the approval of the teams.
It is expected the USA, Mexico, and Brazil accept the proposal, as they have in the past, but there was exasperation from teams that the FIA failed to consult them.
F1 officials were also surprised by the announcement, and it is a situation of affairs that is unlikely to improve the already testing relationship between the governing body and sport’s owners.
FIA and its president Mohammed ben Sulayem, after the Italian GP, took considerable criticism over the use of the safety car at the end of the race and their slow issuing of the grid after qualifying.
The governing body has insisted it retains a good working relationship with the teams, but the atmosphere is already fraught because the teams consider this season the longest and most grueling season in the sport’s history.
