Sainz Sr. considera candidatar-se contra Ben Sulayem para presidente da FIA

It's been a turbulent time at the governing body and with Ben Sulayem himself. Of course, there was the swearing scandal that saw the current president want a crackdown on bad language from the paddock, with drivers then responding to that claim with a Grand Prix Drivers' Association statement.

In November 2024, before the end of the season, there was also a change in the FIA's top team, with the then-race director Niels Wittich replaced very suddenly.

Then, in April 2025, Robert Reid, the former deputy president for sport at the FIA, resigned in a move that hit out at Ben Sulayem, saying he could not serve his role 'in good faith'.

In February, several members of the governing body were banned from a meeting of its world council after refusing to sign a non-disclosure agreement, resulting in an open letter being published by David Richards, the UK's representative, in April, where he said Ben Sulayem's power became "only greater".

According to motorsport.com, Sainz Sr. has had "several key figures from within the motorsport world have approached him" in running against Ben Sulayem to become FIA president.

The Spaniard, father to Williams driver Carlos Sainz Jr., is now "seriously considering" whether to stand against the Emirati in the next FIA president election, which will take place at the end of this year, although no date has been confirmed.

With the amount of controversies that have occurred at the sport's governing body since Ben Sulayem took over, there is a belief that the 63-year-old former rally driver will "present a positive and constructive program” to the FIA delegates, giving them another option in the election for a new president.