
FIA has overlooked criticisms regarding referee Johnny Herbert, who is alleged to be biased against Max Verstappen.
The British former F1 driver Herbert was criticized as one of the referees who penalized Verstappen in Singapore and Mexico. The FIA has thus far ignored these criticisms and appointed him as a referee for this weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix. Herbert rejected claims of bias as an English referee, stating that referees make decisions as a group from around the world. He was part of the referee team that imposed a ten-second penalty on Verstappen in Mexico, while Lando Norris received only a five-second penalty for a similar incident. Jos Verstappen emphasized the need for the FIA to make changes to the referee lineup, stating, “FIA should pay attention to who makes up the referees and whether there are situations that create the appearance of a conflict of interest, especially with former drivers who may show more sympathy towards certain drivers…”

Jos Verstappen indirectly referred to Herbert, a British national, by mentioning individuals like Norris. Verstappen suggested that Herbert could favor his fellow countryman in his decisions, potentially affecting the outcome of the world championship directly. Herbert rejected these claims, stating, “There is a constant narrative that English referees are ‘biased,’ but when we are in that room, we must adhere to the FIA’s rules and guidelines. We must evaluate the race on the track in that way. To say that this is ‘biased’ is absolutely ridiculous, and such a situation does not exist. We work as hard as we can to be fair in our decision-making.”

Herbert also noted that in Mexico, there were American, Belgian, and Brazilian referees in addition to himself, and that all of them had equal authority. Meanwhile, the FIA did not see the need for any intervention regarding this issue and appointed Herbert as a referee for the Brazilian Grand Prix. However, it has been reported that the FIA did not assign the other three referees from the team that penalized Verstappen at the Mexico GP for the Brazilian GP. Former F1 driver Luciano Burti will also be one of the referees officiating at the Brazilian GP.