Mohammed Ben Sulayem, the FIA President, says the future of motorsport is being “driven by innovation and purpose”, as he addressed the FIA World Motor Sport Council during the FIA General Assemblies Week.
Held in Kigali, Rwanda, Ben Sulayem lauded 2024 as a year of progression and a strengthened Federation. The Emirati former professional rally driver noted significant investment from the FIA across global grassroots activities alongside substantial research and development in the safety, volunteers, and officials spaces. The Vision 2030: FIA Motorsport Strategy, which provides a substantial platform for growth and further success, was also unveiled in Kigali during the FIA General Assemblies Week, with more details to be shared in 2025.
President Ben Sulayem said: “This year has been a time of change and growth. We have built a stronger organisation redefining our leadership with high-level appointments that bring a wealth of professional experience to the Federation.
“Together, we are forging the future of global motorsport and as we celebrate 120 years of the FIA, we honour the achievements of our past while propelling ourselves to a future driven by innovation and purpose.
“The FIA is on the right track – in particular, I would like to thank Stefano Domenicali and Formula 1 for our strong and productive partnership this year. The 2024 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season was record-breaking and highly competitive, and we continue our collaboration with Formula 1 and General Motors as we move towards an eleventh team on the grid from 2026.”
The 2024 season concluded in fascinating fashion with the FIA Formula 1 Constructors’ World Championship being decided at the final race in Abu Dhabi earlier this month. McLaren claimed the honours in the UAE capital city, winning their first FIA Formula 1 Constructors’ World Championship in 26 years.
FIA President Ben Sulayem, who was elected President three years ago this month, also shared details of the FIA’s financial year end-report, adding: “We continue to implement a strong commercial strategy and robust accounting process, reducing our deficit and successfully meeting our objective of being a financially sustainable federation.”
Ben Sulayem, together with Domenicali, the President and CEO of FOM (Formula One Management), reflected on a hugely successful season in 2024, which was the longest in the history of the sport. The productivity of the single-seater pyramid, which stretches from Karting through to Formula 1, was highlighted, with no fewer than four drivers stepping up from the FIA Formula 2 Championship into Formula 1 in 2025.
In Kigali, the World Motor Sport Council also approved new 2027 Technical Regulations for the FIA World Rally Championship, focusing on cost reduction, flexibility, and sustainability.
These rules include significant cost reduction compared to the current Rally1 formula and introduce innovative design options, allowing a wide variety of production car shapes and bespoke rally designs to compete. An evolution of the points-scoring system introduced at the start of the 2024 season has also been voted through for 2025 following a year of evaluation and review.
World members also heard how the FIA’s Technical and Safety Department is working on introducing new systems that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance and improve the level of information available to decision-makers.
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