Ex-FIA Chief Blamed for Verstappen’s Qualifying Woes

Eddie Jordan accuses ex-FIA director Niels Wittich of unfairly disadvantaging Max Verstappen during Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying chaos.

Max Verstappen started from 17th position at the Brazilian Grand Prix, which he nevertheless went on to win. On the morning of qualifying, the Dutchman was unexpectedly eliminated in Q1.

The Red Bull driver was unable to complete his lap due to a red flag deployed before the end of the session. It came too late to allow him to finish his lap but too early for him to attempt another after the red flag (Q1 did not resume following the incident).

Immediately after qualifying, Red Bull denounced what they saw as unfair treatment of Max Verstappen: had the red flag been deployed a bit earlier, Max could have completed one final lap when the session resumed. However, the FIA defended itself, explaining that it had waited to see if Lance Stroll could continue.

In the Formula For Success podcast, Eddie Jordan claimed that FIA Race Director Niels Wittich, who has since resigned, deliberately acted to disadvantage the Red Bull driver.

David Coulthard, present alongside Jordan during the podcast, began by defending Wittich.

“We must assume the race director never considers things like car positions to determine if…”

“Of course he does! Of course he does!” interrupted Jordan, referring to Niels Wittich.

“Was Max treated fairly? Was he treated fairly when the red flag came out six or seven cars later? Come on, David, don’t be foolish. You know the gods are with Lando. They want Lando to win this championship. But he won’t, because Max outclassed him. That’s all.”

David Coulthard, visibly uncomfortable with his podcast co-host’s remarks, tried to moderate Jordan’s judgment.

“Well, I’m not sure that’s true. I think sometimes, the racing gods are just…” he began, only to be interrupted again by Jordan.

“The red flag delay was a mistake! It was a mistake!” Jordan asserted. “Wittich messed up, didn’t he?”

Modern F1 Cars: Tractors?

This isn’t Eddie Jordan’s only criticism of contemporary F1.

“These cars—let’s be fair to Lewis [Hamilton], Max [Verstappen], and Lando [Norris]—are doing an incredible job. But they’re tractors… they weigh 1,000 kilograms, they’re massively oversized,” he declared.

“Shame on the regulations, shame on the organizers, and shame on those who let F1 reach this weight. I hate them for it.”

“The V10s—they weren’t just motorsport. They were sex on wheels,” Jordan added, ever unfiltered.

“We’re too timid with what’s happening now, whether it’s regulations or all the other bits and pieces. Will we ever go back to V10s? Probably not.”

“Let’s bring back the V8s or V10s,” Coulthard suggested in response. “Their sound was incredible and resonated with the fans.”

Unsurprisingly, the 2026 engine regulations, which lean further into electric technology, don’t sit well with the former McLaren F1 driver.

“I’m concerned about this 50/50 balance between combustion engines and electric energy,” he admitted.

“But we need to stay open-minded. You can’t dismiss it before seeing the results.”