F1’s governing body the FIA has reached an innovative two-tier agreement with the World Rally Championship (WRC) drivers after a swearing fine sparked a mass protest.

The FIA announced revised stewards’ guidelines for 2025 in January, putting drivers across motorsport at risk of heavy fines, points deductions and race bans for misconduct charges.

FIA agree to two-tier system after protest over WRC swearing fine

It followed a high-profile stand off between the FIA and Max Verstappen in 2024, which saw the Red Bull driver and reigning F1 World Champion punished for swearing in a press conference ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix.

Adrien Fourmaux, the Hyundai WRC star, became the first driver to be punished under the new guidelines following a stage-end interview at Rally Sweden in February.

Referring to an incident in which he had forgotten to fasten his helmet ahead of a stage, forcing him to stop during the run and lose valuable time to his competitors, Fourmaux remarked that he had “f***ed up.”

The Frenchman’s use of foul language saw him hit with a €10,000 fine with a further €20,000 suspended for 12 months.

The newly established World Rally Drivers’ Alliance (WoRDA), the WRC equivalent of F1’s Grand Prix Drivers’ Association, issued a firm statement in response to the punishment handed to Fourmaux and called for ‘direct communication and engagement’ with FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem.

With no contact from Ben Sulayem forthcoming in the aftermath of Rally Sweden, the WRC drivers opted to stage a mass protest at the following round in Kenya last month as the long-held practice of stage-end interviews was dropped.

However, a breakthrough has been made ahead of this weekend’s Rally Islas Canarias in Spain, where a two-tier system is in place following a compromise agreement.

Drivers have been given more leeway to use foul language in heat-of-the-moment situations like stage-end interviews, communications with co-drivers during live stages and on road sections between stages, all falling under the banner of ‘uncontrolled zones’.

Meanwhile, usual standards are expected to be upheld in ‘controlled zones’ encompassing press conferences and other formal media engagements.

It is unclear if the two-tier system could be replicated in F1, with Verstappen airing his frustrations with the sport’s lack of freedom of expression at last weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The WRC agreement comes after meetings between FIA road sport director Emilia Abel and Julien Ingrassia, the former co-driver of eight-time WRC champion Sebastien Ogier.

Ogier previously staged a silent protest at last year’s Rally Chile having been hit with a suspended €30,000 fine for critical comments over how a stage was managed in Greece.

Ingrassia was clear that the change did not represent a change to Appendix B of the FIA’s International Sporting Code, with the two-tier system instead effectively a gentleman’s agreement between the governing body and WoRDA.

He told the specialist rally website Dirtfish: “We are very pleased to report agreement was reached after recent weeks of discussion between WoRDA members and the FIA.

“This is the result of positive and encouraging meetings with Emilia Abel, who has been the main point of contact with the FIA and has shown plenty of consideration to reach this agreement.

“The rally will now be divided into two zones: one is a controlled zone, one is an uncontrolled zone.

“The latter is based around heat-of-the-moment areas such as stage ends, onboard cars during the stages or on road sections.

“Controlled sections are, for example, the media zones and the post-event FIA press conferences.

“This is not a change to Appendix B, which cannot be modified in 2025. Rather, this is an agreement between the FIA and WoRDA.

“We’re really pleased to find a solution.

“As was the case in Formula 1, adjustments were needed to take into consideration some of the unique aspects of our discipline.

“A common objective has now been reached: to follow the regulations laid out in Appendix B as closely as possible, while leaving enough room for the emotions and authenticity that rally fans expect.

“Only swear words are targeted in this agreement; WoRDA agrees that violence and gross misconduct has no place in our sport.

“This will be enacted immediately from this week’s Rally Islas Canarias.”

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