The Court of Appeal has delivered its verdict, Masson crowned F4 France champion

We therefore had to wait a month and a half to officially know the identity of the French F4 champion driver. While the final result of the last meeting of Magny-Cours – and therefore of the championship – was still suspended on the appeal lodged by the competitor-tutor of Macéo Capietto, the FFSA appeal court confirmed the exclusion of Macéo Capietto of the Magny-Cours meeting, as well as the obligation to count this result as a mandatory draw.

As a reminder, the competitor of the car No. 5 had been found guilty “of a suicide attack” at the Adelaide bend in the last lap of race 3 of the Magny-Cours meeting, qualified as “Unsportsmanlike behavior” by the commissioners, who “harmed the results and the image of the French F4 Championship”. By failing to brake, Macéo Capietto, then in 3rd position, overtook Hugh Barter but above all collided sideways with Esteban Masson, then leader of the race and who was heading towards the champion title. This racing incident then offered the title to Capietto, who was ultimately excluded from the meeting a few minutes later, which ultimately made Esteban Masson the champion. 

The deliberate nature of the incident not retained

Not satisfied with the decision taken by the college of commissioners and refuting that it was a deliberate and voluntary act, Macéo Capietto and his guardian therefore appealed. After hearing both parties in mid-November, the FFSA Appeal Tribunal rendered its judgment. To be extremely precise, the Court initially canceled “decision no. 6 of the College of Sporting Stewards (taken in Magny-Cours after the race, Editor’s note) in the sense that the reasons were not adapted to the facts of the case and, consequently, the legal characterization of the facts was erroneous. Before ruling again in his own name, and inflicting on the driver of car no. 5 “a disqualification from the Magny-Cours event as well as the obligation to count this result as a mandatory null result in accordance with articles 11.9.3.j and 12.2.1.h of the CSI as well as article III . A. PG” and decided to maintain the exclusion of Macéo Capietto from the meeting. 

In essence, the TAN initially annulled the decision taken in Magny-Cours by the College of Commissioners, considering, among other things, that it “was solely dictated by the suspicion of possible premeditation of the incident on the part of the appellant” and that'“no part of the file and no element mentioned during the debates allows us to characterize an intentional element in the conduct of the appellant during the collision with car no. 9; that consequently, it is not relevant to draw, as the CCS did, the conclusion that the incident which occurred between the appellant and car no. 9 would be the result of a proven desire of the appellant to 'carry out an unfair maneuver that could harm the sincerity of the French F4 Championship certified by the FIA ​​2021 or influence the result in contradiction with sporting ethics; that, consequently, the reason noted by the CCS of the intentional nature of the contested decision through the legal basis cannot succeed in this case; In conclusion, the TAN considers that the decision of the CCS, as far as it concerns sporting penalties, is based on an erroneous assessment and legal qualification of the facts.” 

After overturning the decision of the panel of commissioners, the FFSA Appeal Tribunal communicated its decision by in turn disqualifying Macéo Capietto. The TAN notably considered that the driver of car no. 5 "violently hit a competitor who preceded him for the benefit of an incorrect and dangerous maneuver, the TAN considers that there is reason to pronounce against the appellant, his disqualification from the Magny-Cours event in application of articles 11.9.3.j and 12.4.1 CSI, as well as counting this event as a mandatory draw for the purpose of establishing the general classification of the French F4 Championship certified by the FIA ​​2021. As a result, Esteban Masson is crowned F4 France FFSA and FIA champion. Macéo Capietto, for his part, fell to third place in the ranking, which promoted the Australian Hugh Barter to the honorary title of vice-champion.