Mohammed Ben Sulayem, the president of the FIA, has hinted that future F1 contracts could force drivers to participate in community service work.

It comes after newly crowned World Champion Max Verstappen finally served his punishment for swearing in an FIA press conference at the Singapore Grand Prix.

FIA to force F1 drivers to undertake community service work?

Verstappen was sanctioned for swearing in an FIA press conference ahead of the Singapore GP in September, with the governing body ordering the Red Bull driver to “undertake some work of public interest.”

The action against the Red Bull driver came soon after Ben Sulayem had called for a clampdown on F1 drivers using foul language, insisting “we have to differentiate between our sport and rap music.”

Verstappen proceeded to stage a form of protest for the remainder of the Singapore GP weekend, being noticeably unforthcoming in FIA media press conferences by offering a series of short and one-word answers.

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Verstappen’s stance was praised by his fellow competitors, including Mercedes driver and seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton, who urged Verstappen to ignore the FIA’s punishment.

Lando Norris, the McLaren driver, also described the action against his rival as “pretty unfair.”

Verstappen’s rebellion even spread across the wider motorsport landscape, with eight-time World Rally Champion Sebastien Ogier staging a similar protest after being fined for stage-end comments in Greece.

Verstappen finally served his punishment on Friday in Rwanda, the host of the FIA’s annual prize-giving gala.

The Red Bull driver appeared alongside Ben Sulayem in the capital city of Kigali for a grassroots motorsport development event organised by the Rwanda Automobile Club and attended by aspiring drivers and engineers.

A series of clips posted to social media showed Verstappen greeting a number of fans before making a speech in front of a small crowd.

Later that evening, the 27-year-old collected the F1 World Championship trophy for the fourth year in a row at the governing body’s annual awards ceremony.

Speaking after Verstappen’s appearance in Kigali, Ben Sulayem raised the possibility that drivers could be contractually obliged to undertake some community work in the future with the FIA keen for it to no longer be considered a punishment.

He said: “[Max] really fulfilled his promise.

“This is the community service we need every single driver, champion, to do if we want to grow.

“If we talk about diversity: this is the real diversity. It was not about the car, mainly about the people there.

“I believe maybe in the future we won’t have to have it as a penalty.

“It has to come as a gesture from the drivers and maybe I’ll put it in the contract once they get their licence.”

Prior to Verstappen’s appearance, Ben Sulayem claimed that the Red Bull driver was pleased to hear about the nature of his community service and stressed the importance of F1 drivers giving back to the wider motorsport community.

He told RwandaTV: “It’s a funny story – we said we need clean verbal language all the time.

“And of course, very young, he said one word and then they penalised him with community service.

“So I met him in Qatar and I said: ‘Max, don’t worry. What you are going to do is you are going to encourage and inspire young girls and boys who want to go into motorsport. And you will do that and that is your community service, when you come and receive your trophy in Rwanda.’

“And he was so happy.

“So this is a link, because whatever you do [is positive]. I was a champion in my area in the Middle East for 20 years, but the people who made me are also the fans.

“And the fans don’t come from far away and it’s only by the internet and by social media. The fan is when you live [with] them, when you sit with them, when you feel them.

“So it is a big part of the duty that a champion, an ambassador, has to give back to society. And what is better, when we talk about diversity, than him being here?

“And he was so happy about it and so pleased. He was so happy that when he is here, he will sit with the upcoming kids, girls and boys, to inspire them.”

The FIA’s decision to hold its annual awards ceremony in Rwanda comes as the African nation steps up its efforts to secure a place on the F1 calendar.

Paul Kagame, the president of Rwanda, confirmed on Friday that an official bid is to be launched for a grand prix at a purpose-built track near the planned Bugesera airport close to Kigali.

F1 has not raced on the African continent since the 1993 South African Grand Prix, with plans to revive the race at the historic Kyalami circuit failing to materialise.

Hamilton, who will turn 40 next month, recently revealed that Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has assured him that the sport will hold a race in Africa before his retires from the sport.

The 2025 Ferrari driver told media including PlanetF1.com at the Las Vegas Grand Prix: “I’ve been speaking to him so much about getting the race in Africa and he’s really the one that’s promised that he’s going to make sure we get this done before I leave here.”

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