JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia – This weekend’s Saudi Grand Prix is expected to go ahead as planned despite Formula 1 drivers raising concerns about a missile attack on a nearby oil facility on Friday afternoon.
Talks between drivers, team bosses and F1 executives about the security of the event continued until 2:30 a.m. Saturday before team principals emerged from a meeting with the CEO. F1 Stefano Domenicali and confirmed the race will continue.
The safety of the event was called into question after an Aramco oil depot 10 kilometers east of the circuit was hit with a missile on Friday afternoon.
A military spokesman for the Houthis in Yemen, which has been fighting the Saudi-led coalition for seven years, claimed responsibility for the attack on a facility owned by F1 sponsor Aramco.
Drivers considered boycotting the event but were told out of it in the early hours of Saturday morning.
The facility remained in flames throughout the night, with a large plume of smoke still visible from several miles away on Saturday morning.
The Saudi authorities claimed there were no casualties as a result of the attacks.
In a statement on Saturday noon, more than eight hours after drivers were persuaded not to boycott the event the night before, F1 confirmed the race would go on.
“Formula One and the FIA can confirm that following discussions with all teams and drivers, the 2022 FIA Formula One Saudi Arabia Grand Prix will continue as scheduled,” the statement reads. .
“Following the widely reported incident that took place in Jeddah on Friday, there was extensive discussion among all parties involved, Saudi government agencies and security agencies came up with complete and detailed guarantees that the event is safe.
“It was agreed with all stakeholders to maintain a clear and open dialogue throughout the event and for the future.”
Some drivers were initially concerned about the situation before the second practice session, leading to Domenicali rushing to arrange a meeting which delayed the practice by 15 minutes.
The F1 chief executive attempted to reassure drivers of the event’s security before all 20 returned to their cars to take part in the hour-long track.
After practice ended, a second meeting was held with Domenicali, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, team bosses and drivers in F1’s hospitality division at the track.
It lasted about 40 minutes before Domenicali and Ben Sulayem showed up and announced the race would continue after security guarantees from the Saudi government, and paying the hosting fee for the race.
“We have received complete assurance that the safety of the country comes first,” Domenicali told reporters after the first meeting with drivers and team bosses. “No matter what the situation is, safety has to be ensured.
“Surname [Saudi officials] are here with their family really here at the track. So they have all the systems in place to protect this area, the city, the places we’re going.
“So we feel confident and we have to trust the local government in that respect. So of course we’ll go ahead with the event.”
Ben Sulayem added: “We had meetings with senior security and then we had meetings of course with the team principals, we had meetings with the drivers.
“Who is [the Houthis] targeting? They are targeting infrastructure, economic infrastructure, not civilians and of course not tracking.
“We’ve checked the facts from them and we have assurance from the top that this is a safe place, everything will be secure and let’s get on with the race.
“Because for sure all the families are here. We are just expecting but with the assurance that nothing will happen.”
Asked if drivers would agree with the decision, Domenicali added: “They’ll be on the right track.”
Following Domenicali’s statement, the drivers stayed in F1’s living room for another three hours. They initially attended Friday’s briefing as usual with the FIA’s race director Niels Wittich but continued to discuss the missile strikes and event safety.
They were visited by Domenicali and F1 chief executive Ross Brawn, who then left for their office in the race control building. Team principals were summoned to Domenicali’s office around 1:30 a.m. but stopped at the driver’s suite amid growing boycott talks.
After more than four hours in total, the drivers left their rooms, with George Russell of Mercedes, director of the Grand Prix Drivers Association, joining a meeting between Domenicali and team bosses in the control building. race.
Shortly after entering the building, Russell and the captain returned to the paddock, where several team bosses confirmed to the media that the race would continue.
Speaking earlier in the day, Red Bull boss Christian Horner said he agreed with the decision to continue the race.
“I think the sport has to have a collective companionship,” said Horner. “Any act of terrorism cannot be tolerated. The sport should not be subjected to bullying in a position where a situation like this is unacceptable.
“Stefano and the president, they’re working on that. The organizers have secured it all and we’re going to race.”
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff added: “[The F1 circuit] Probably the safest place you can be in Saudi Arabia at the moment. “
The race promoter, Saudi Motorsport Company (SMC), confirmed the attack and said security had been enhanced to match the threat posed by the event.
“We became aware of the attack on the Aramco distribution station in Jeddah earlier this afternoon,” SMC said in a statement.
“Race organizers remain in direct contact with the security agencies of Saudi Arabia, as well as F1 and the FIA to ensure all necessary safety and security measures continue to be taken to ensure the safety of all visitors to the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Saudi Arabia as well as all drivers, teams and stakeholders.
“The race weekend schedule will continue as planned. The safety and security of all our guests continues to be our main priority and we look forward to welcoming fans for a racing weekend and high end entertainment.”
