Rally drivers unite in protest against FIA swearing clampdown

Wednesday, 19 March 2025 at 19:22

Drivers competing in the World Rally Championship (WRC) will stay silent, or speak only in their own languages, in stage-end interviews at this week's Kenya Safari Rally in protest at the FIA's ban on swearing.

The swearing saga was initiated by motorsport's governing body with new clampdowns, which irked Formula 1 drivers including four-time Formula 1 World Champion Max Verstappen. This triggered a letter from the GPDA to FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, in protest of the swearing clampdown and the hefty fines that come with transgression.

In the latest development, the World Rally Drivers Alliance (WoRDA) said in a statement on Wednesday that the action was necessary in the sport's interest. This after Hyundai's French driver Adrien Fourmaux (pictured below) was fined 10,000 euros ($10,907) with a further 20,000 suspended, for swearing in a television interview at the end of Rally Sweden in February.

The fine was the first since amendments to the FIA sporting code in January set out stiff sanctions for drivers who break the rules concerning conduct, including bad language.

We all agree to keep rudeness at the microphone to a minimum

WRC drivers begin protest against FIA at Safari Rally Kenya | DAZN News US

The rally drivers and co-drivers set up WoRDA, which is similar to Formula 1's GPDA, after Fourmaux's penalty when they condemned "exorbitant" fines that they said were vastly disproportionate to average incomes and budgets in rallying.

WoRDA said in a statement: "We all agree to keep rudeness at the microphone to a minimum. At the same time, it is necessary to maintain a certain freedom of expression and to keep emotions alive while drivers don't need to be afraid of getting punished in any way."

WoRDA said it had asked FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, a 14-times Middle East rally champion, for "some positive changes in the rules to help us achieve this goal.

The statement added: "It is impossible for us to guarantee that we (drivers and co-drivers) will be able to follow these rules perfectly and systematically. That is why we -- WoRDA members -- are now taking the responsible decision to remain silent at the live stage end interviews or to answer in our mother tongue."

"We apologise to all the rally fans, even though we know they support us," the WoRDA statement added. There was no immediate comment from the FIA.