The head of the FIA asserts that the relationship with Verstappen is "positive."

      "It’s similar to the situation with nearly all the other drivers."

      The FIA's current president asserts that he maintains a "good" relationship with Max Verstappen. After succeeding Jean Todt at the end of 2021, Mohammed Ben Sulayem has emerged as a highly controversial and polarizing figure leading F1’s governing body. He has had conflicts not just with individuals within the Paris-based organization but also with those in the Formula 1 paddock, including the drivers. Some believe that the 63-year-old Emirati has the least favorable rapport with Verstappen, who was mandated to complete community service last winter for using profanity during a press conference.

      "My relationship with Max is as good as it is with any other driver," Ben Sulayem stated in an interview with the Dutch magazine Formule 1. After taking a more subdued approach recently, Ben Sulayem is once again engaging with the media as he prepares for a competitive challenge in the FIA presidential elections later this year from his adversary Tim Mayer.

      The current FIA leader has sparked renewed interest in his potential re-election by suggesting a return to loud V8 engines for F1, as well as the possibility of introducing a twelfth team. Ben Sulayem now claims he is mending ties with top F1 drivers. "I've met with them," he said. "And with WRC and other drivers as well. They all have my phone number. They reach out to me, and I reach out to them.

      "But if we’re going to discuss the ban on swearing on FIA channels, believe me, I will always adhere to that," Ben Sulayem emphasized. "I was a racing driver myself, and I never swore. We just need to exercise self-control, including the drivers. They are all intelligent individuals, ambassadors of our sport, and they represent the future of it."

      Ben Sulayem recently agreed to soften the severity of potential penalties for driver swearing but affirms he will not entirely relent. "Personally, I think Muhammad Ali was the greatest athlete ever," he remarked, "and I never heard him use profanity. The same goes for Lewis Hamilton—I never heard him swear in any of his teams.

      "We have modified Section B of the International Sporting Code to relax the penalties regarding swearing, showing that we listened to the drivers. At the same time, we also have a duty to act in the public interest and to the FIA's advantage."

      However, quadruple world champion Verstappen continues his near-silent protest against the swearing restriction by remaining quite muted during FIA press conferences. Ben Sulayem maintains that his relationship with the 27-year-old is satisfactory. "It’s the same as with nearly all the other drivers," he noted.

      "Max is a fantastic champion, and a young one at that. He is eager, clever, and truly wants to succeed. The same is true for Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, and Charles Leclerc. They are all exceptional drivers, and you witness their rapid development. Fifteen years ago, there weren't as many young people on the grid. I remember signing Kimi Antonelli’s super license and realizing he was just 17. When you consider that, it's genuinely astonishing."