Here (perhaps) is a thorn removed from the foot of Red Bull and Max Verstappen. On Wednesday, the FIA announced that Johnny Herbert has been removed from his role as F1 steward for the 2025 season, a position he had held since 2010. The governing body justified this decision by explaining that the former English pilot could no longer hold this position alongside his work as a consultant for the British media.
The three-time Grand Prix winner in Formula 1 had seen his position weakened during the 2024 season, notably by his scathing statements against Max Verstappen, notably mentioning the"horrible mentality" Dutch driver Johnny Herbert was on the stewards' panel at last year's Mexican Grand Prix, where the Red Bull driver was handed a 20-second penalty for his aggressive maneuvers against Lando Norris. Johnny Herbert is also the one who gave Max Verstappen community service after he used the insult "fucked" at a press conference in Singapore.
Although he denies any link between Johnny Herbert's departure and potential influence from the Red Bull and Verstappen clans, Christian Horner nevertheless welcomed the FIA's decision for the sake of impartiality. "It has absolutely nothing to do with Max, but it is absolutely the right decision, said Red Bull Team Principal with Sky Sports. You can't have commissioners who work in the media. You don't in the Premier League, or any other form of professional sport, it's totally inappropriate. You're either on the side of sport, the regulation, or you're on the side of the media. You can't have a foot in both camps."
Brown urges FIA to adopt permanent stewards
Until now, in Formula 1, the FIA has adopted a rotation system between its four stewards, who alternate from one race to another. Johnny Herbert was one of its four driver-stewards last year and has covered almost a third of the Grands Prix in 2024. Now, several players in the discipline are calling for more stability and more consistency in decision-making on each race weekend. According to Zak Brown, the solution would be to use the same stewards on each round.
"We are in a multi-billion dollar sport, a lot is at stake, the role of commissioner is not an easy one, underlines the CEO of Mclaren racing. I think you need full-time commissaires and they need to be paid. (…) We need to look at the regulations, I think they are a bit too prescriptive. And if you have full-time commissaires, give them a bit more leniency. They will know what is right and what is wrong with this whole 'first to the rope' thing because it is a bit too prescriptive and it takes away a bit of the flavour of the race. So I think that problem could be solved."
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vincent moyet
02/02/2025 at 10:42 a.m.
Red Bull and the Verstappen clan have got Johnny Herbert's skin, that's clear. We are swimming in amorality: those who have power blow up those who disturb them to benefit from impunity.