A number of Formula 1 drivers have told Formula One Management (FOM) not to broadcast messages on the TV feed when they swear in radio message to their team, following a request from the FIA to watch their language.
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has called on FOM to consider what is aired, but also told Autosport that the drivers themselves should try and avoid using swear words in the car. That request drew short shrift from championship leader Max Verstappen (pictured above), who — after being reminded about his language during a prior answer in the FIA press conference — believes attempts to limit swearing on team radio is an oversensitive approach.
“I think you will swear anyway,” Verstappen said. “If it’s not in this room maybe somewhere else. Everyone swears. Some people a bit more than others. It also depends a bit what language you speak. Of course, abuse is something else.
“I think a lot of things get broadcast nowadays where in other sports you don’t run around with a mic attached to you. I think a lot of people say a lot of bad things when they are full of adrenaline in other sports, it just doesn’t get picked up. Where here, probably also for entertainment purposes, things get sent out and that’s where people can pick up on it, discuss it on social media and you get all sorts of trouble.
“So I think it already just starts with not broadcasting it. I mean, if you don’t broadcast it, no one will know. Only the team, but with that you deal internally with these kind of things. But it’s just probably a bit the world that we live in, within the sport but also in general, it seems like people are a bit more sensitive to stuff.
“That’s how it goes. I guess the world is changing a bit, but I think it already just starts with not broadcasting it or not giving the option for people to hear it in general. Of course, there are a lot of apps where people can listen to radios and stuff. You have to probably limit it or have a bit of a delay that you can censor out a few things.
“That will help a lot more than putting bans on drivers because for example I couldn’t even say the f-word. I mean it’s not even that bad, right? I mean. the car was not working, the car is f-ed. And then, excuse me for the language but come on, what are we? Five-year-olds, six-year-olds?
“Even if a five-year-old or six-year-old is watching, I mean they will eventually swear anyway even if their parents won’t or they will not allow it. When they grow up they will walk around with their friends and they will be swearing. So you know this is not changing anything.”
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Lando Norris agreed with Verstappen, saying the passion of the drivers is something that should be celebrated as it currently sees them displaying a raw emotion.
“I mean, they can just not play the radios, so it’s quite simple from their side,” Norris said. “We’re the guys in the heat of the moment, under stress, under pressure, fighting, having big crashes — it’s a lot easier for them to say than for us to do because we’re out there putting our hearts on the line trying to race people and we’re giving it our all.
“Our heart rates are so high, we’re just putting our passion and our love into it. Of course there’s going to be some bad words on the other side of it, but that’s just because we’re trying and we’re wanting to give our best, and we feel hard done by when things don’t go right, and if it’s because of excitement that’s because we’re happy for what goes into it.
“But I’m sure you have it in every other sport, it’s just that it’s not always recorded and things like that. They have the option to delete it or not play it, but that’s more for them to do rather than for us to stop because we’re the ones in the position of being under pressure, being stressed and trying to get our points across to our team, that kind of thing.
“But this language is also used as emphasis on certain points — it’s not because you want it to be directly against someone and be aggressive towards someone, it’s just a general feeling that you’re having. And if the team know you’re meaning it as much as you’re meaning it, then it has a bigger impact than just saying, ‘I’m not very happy,’ because they can easily take that as a minute thing. So I think that’s more on the FIA’s part rather than our part to change.”
Norris suggested an optional alternative feed with censored expletives could be a solution.
“They have the choice. They get all the radio and they have the choice to just press ‘go out to public’ or not,” he said. “You obviously have kids listening and younger people, and from that side you don’t want it to go out, but honestly I just think it’s the passion of the sport and it’s the passion of us wanting to go out and perform our best in a very tough sport.
“So I definitely don’t think it should be banned. I think maybe if parents know they can pick between a bleeped-out version and a non-bleeped-out version, same with a lot of other movies and things like that. But I don’t think it should be banned, I think you’re just listening to the rawness of drivers and their thoughts and their feelings and things like that.
“When I listen to it I find it cool and I find it exciting when you listen to these kind of things, and it’s not just nice, gentle, soft language that people are using. So I’m sure there’s plenty of other sports you can watch if that’s what you want to hear.”
Yuki Tsunoda often uses swear words during team radio messages when driving, and he says it’s something that shows differences between drivers.
“I think definitely sensitive,” Tsunoda said. “Probably because we have radio systems, so that’s why the broadcasters, they get to accidentally maybe show the swear words on the TV. But I’m sure if you mic’d up in every other sports — in football, if you mic’d up every player, or basketball, whatever, they’re all swearing, I guess.
“It’s part of the… I wouldn’t say personality, but … obviously, there’s certain words that will go above the limit. It happened to me this year, but if it’s just like f-words or whatever, it’s just part of the way that you express the feeling. So I don’t see why there’s an issue. And I’m sure even FIA people swear sometimes.”
Sergio Perez believes the FIA’s request is not a realistic one for drivers to try and adhere to given the adrenaline that comes with racing at such high intensity.
“I don’t think many people in the heat of the moment will follow their suggestions!” Perez said. “It’s a very funny sport. They put the microphone on your mouth… imagine in football, footballers after they kicked, but you have to control yourself. I think if they want to control that they should just delete the radio — take away the radio and give us the privacy.”