Debate | FIA still hasn't got its act together at Singapore GP

The FIA again showed at the Singapore Grand Prix that they still don't have their act together. The race was postponed by an hour because of a heavy downpour on the track, even though the rain had stopped earlier. Even during the race itself, race control was too slow in making decisions.

There has been much criticism of the FIA after the Singapore race from fans, but also Formula One experts. Once again, not enough action was taken quickly enough by race control. It seems the FIA has still not learned from the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix. The race in Spa was delayed for a long time due to heavy rain and only two laps were eventually run behind the safety car.

There was also a heavy downpour in Singapore, which delayed the start of the race by an hour. It eventually stopped raining earlier, but the FIA still chose to wait until an hour after the original start. A mistake was made at Spa by not starting immediately when the rain abated, which meant fans ended up not seeing their favourite drivers in action. The FIA may be lucky that more showers did not fall at the Marina Bay circuit, as the start would have had to be delayed even longer.

FIA not taking decisions fast enough

The FIA almost seems to be afraid of rain races these days, as once again the full wets were not used because the race organisers had waited so long that the track had already dried up reasonably well. Also during the race, the FIA made slow decisions by delaying the activation of the DRS for a very long time, while drivers switched to slicks halfway through the race. Several drivers wondered over the team radio why the DRS had not yet been activated. Especially on a circuit like Singapore, where overtaking is already difficult, drivers need DRS to attack their rivals.

To complete the story, the FIA also chose to delay the investigation into Sergio Perez until after the race. In other classes such as IndyCar, race organisers can decide on infractions within minutes, but in F1, fans are not told who the real race winner is until hours after the race.

The Singapore GP shows once again that a lot still needs to change within the FIA. What do you think of the statement: The FIA still does not have its affairs in order at the Singapore GP. Let us know in the comments.