Carlos Sainz Sr. considering run for FIA president

Field Level Media|published: Wed 7th May, 21:17 2025

Pataskala native Riley Pegram, right, practices for a Kumho FIA TCR World Tour event at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington on Friday, June 7, 2024.

Two-time FIA world champion Carlos Sainz Sr. may be throwing his hat into the ring to become the motorsport governing body's president, according to a report by Motorsport.com.

Current president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has served since 2021, but his four years have been beset by controversy. He has not officially declared for re-election, but is widely known to be mounting a campaign.

The selection will occur in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on Dec. 12.

Both Sainz Sr. and Ben Sulayem are 63 years old and former competitors. Sainz Sr., who has won four Dakar Rally events, competed in the event in January. The elder Sainz is the father of Williams F1 driver Carlos Sainz.

"This possibility has been in my mind for some time now, not very deeply, but now I think it could be the right time in my career for me to take the step," said Sainz Sr., as reported by the BBC. "I'm confident I can do a good job and put together an excellent team to give back to the sport part of what it has given me.

"I have accumulated a lot of experience in this sport throughout the years and I'm certain I can bring new and interesting things, to strengthen and develop the sport and the automobile world."

There have been no formal declarations by Sainz Sr., Ben Sulayem or any others at this time, although others are expected to run.

Under Ben Sulayem's leadership, FIA has experienced a bevy of contentious situations. Robert Reid, the deputy president for sport, resigned in April, claiming "a fundamental breakdown in governance standards." That led former FIA CEO Natalie Robyn, who was forced out in the summer of 2024, to break her silence and concur with Reid's sentiments.

Drivers have also been critical of Ben Sulayem's ban on swearing. Moreover, Susie Wolff, the chief executive of F1 Academy for aspiring female drivers, is

wolff filed a legal complaint against the FIA after a conflict of interest inquiry was lodged against her and husband Toto Wolff, president of Mercedes Motosport, but FIA closed it two days later.

--Field Level Media

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