Horner sees change: 'It's a new chapter'

Michael Masi played a key role in the title battle between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen last season. The former race director faced a lot of criticism and eventually had to give way as a result. Christian Horner feels sorry for Masi in retrospect, he told the Beyond the Grid podcast of Formula1.com.

Because of the fierce battle that erupted between Verstappen and Hamilton in 2021, Masi also faced a major challenge. For instance, both teams created the necessary pressure on the race committee, which often took a long time to reach a decision.

Horner has respect for Masi's performance

It eventually resulted in the FIA opting to say goodbye to Masi at the end of the season and bring in replacements. Horner noticed that Niels Wittich and Eduaro Freitas were getting a lot more help than the Australian had received in the past and therefore thinks Masi had deserved more credit.

"It’s a new chapter within the FIA. I think that Michael, in difficult circumstances, did the very best he could throughout the year," Horner stated. "And we have to remember he’s had very little support in that Race Control tower, he’s left very much on his own up there."