F1 pays tribute to Charlie Whiting

Victim of a pulmonary embolism, Charlie Whiting died three days before the first Grand Prix of the 2019 season. In the Australian paddock, the emotion has been palpable since the announcement of the sad news, experienced as the death of an important member of the family. 

On this day traditionally reserved for media activities, tributes followed one another to salute the memory of Whiting and the contribution he made to motorsport for more than 40 years, including around twenty as race director on Grands Prix and responsible safety issues at the FIA. 

« Charlie was a pillar of the Formula 1, said Toto wolff in Mercedes. He was keen to defend the interests of sport above all else and he did so fairly and with the necessary understanding. He was a fantastic ambassador for our discipline and a guardian of its values. Her smile and kindness will be missed by all those who were lucky enough to know her. ». 

« Charlie was a true professional with immense knowledge but more than that, he was a delightful man, who always treated people with respect, added his counterpart at Ferrari, Mattia Binotto. It made F1 safer. We have lost a friend who will be greatly missed. ». 

« Charlie played a key role in the sport, reacted for his part Christian Horner at Red Bull. As race director, he had been the arbiter and voice of reason for years. He was a man of great integrity who demonstrated learned tact in occupying such a difficult position. Charlie will be greatly missed by the entire paddock and the motorsport community ». 

Guenther Steiner, main team of Haas, considered for his part that “ without Charlie's help to point us in the right direction 5 years ago, the stable would not be here. It makes us realize how little life depends on. Just yesterday he was among us, in a good mood, and today he is no longer here. He is one of the greats of F1 and we must keep in mind what he has done for the sport ». 

McLaren greeted a “ giant of our sport as well as a brilliant colleague » Williams and Pirelli an F1 legend ", and Renault a " passionate person who worked tirelessly to make racing exciting, fair, and safe ». 

Many pilots also expressed their sorrow. 

« Charlie was a lover of F1 and a tutelary figure of our sport, notably declared Romain Grosjean, who used to interact with Whiting in his role as director of the GPDA. I will miss the meetings we had during Grand Prix weekends. He was always attentive to the pilots and eager to improve our safety ».

« I am still shocked, commented Sebastian Vettel at the FIA ​​press conference this afternoon. I spoke to him yesterday and we covered the first turns of the circuit on foot. He was one of us. The door to his office was always open. He was a very kind man, coupled with a real competitor, a racer ».