Ben Sulayem faces new pressure over F1 Concorde Agreement

Mohammed Ben Sulayem, FIA President, will return to F1 at this week’s Bahrain GP — following his absence during the holy month of Ramadan.

Tensions are mounting as all F1 teams have signed the 2026 Concorde Agreement with Liberty Media — while the FIA has yet to give its final approval.

This tripartite agreement governs crucial aspects of F1:

• Competition regulatory framework
• Championship governance
• Prize money distribution
• Commercial terms

Liberty Media announced that all teams, including newcomer Cadillac for 2026, have agreed to the terms. However, Ben Sulayem seeks a larger financial share for FIA — to fund race supervision, marshal training, and steward development.

Tensions escalated after David Richards, Chairman of Motorsport UK, threatened legal action against FIA. In his open letter last month, Richards criticized Ben Sulayem’s leadership for violating organization statutes and failing to fulfill campaign promises.

“There has been a distinct failure for Ben Sulayem to honor the pledges he made when running for election,” Richards stated in his letter.

FIA recently responded through their general manager’s letter on April 9—but without providing concrete solutions to Richards’ concerns.