That part has a lot of people in the paddock talking right now. You are referring to Mohammed Ben Sulayem, the current FIA President, and a highly controversial new proposal to completely remove presidential term limits within the organization.
If passed, this change would essentially allow him to remain in power indefinitely, rewriting the very rules that would have eventually forced him to step down. Here is a breakdown of what is happening with this proposal and the ongoing power structure shifts at the FIA.
1. Abolishing Presidential Term Limits
Under the current FIA statutes which were heavily championed by previous administration changes to ensure democratic rotation an FIA President is limited to serving a maximum of three four-year terms (12 years total).
The new proposal explicitly seeks to abolish these term limits entirely across all senior FIA posts.
- The FIA’s Defense: An FIA spokesperson stated the change is meant to establish a “consistent approach to tenure” across all governing bodies, bringing the presidency in line with the Senate and World Councils, which don’t have the same strict limits. Reddit
- The Paddock’s Reaction: Critics and F1 insiders view it as a blatant power grab designed to transition the governing body from a democracy into a permanent fixture under Ben Sulayem’s control.
Moving the Goalposts for Challengers
Alongside pulling down the fence on term limits, two additional rule amendments have been proposed that make it significantly harder for an outside challenger to run against the incumbent:
- Stricter Experience Requirements: Candidates must now formally “demonstrate sufficient experience within an FIA member or an FIA body” to even be considered eligible to run. Reddit
- Doubling the Support Deadline: The timeframe required for a challenger to submit their full, official list of vice-presidents and support team members has been drastically extended moving from 49 days up to 100 days before the election date. Reddit
The Backstory: “The Illusion of Democracy”
This isn’t the first time the election rules have caused an uproar. Late last year, ahead of the December 2025 election cycle, Ben Sulayem ended up running unopposed because of structural roadblocks in the candidate submission rules. The Guardian Challengers like former FIA senior steward Tim Mayer and Swiss racing driver Laura Villars (who went as far as taking the FIA to court in Paris to try to suspend the election) ran into an arcane requirement: a candidate must secure a specific list of 10 names, including vice-presidents from all seven global FIA regions. If the incumbent already holds political sway or pressure in those regions, it becomes mathematically impossible for a challenger to even form a valid running ticket. Mayer famously called the setup “the illusion of democracy.”
The Big Picture: This move further widens the deep rift between the FIA and Formula One Management (FOM/Liberty Media). F1 teams and corporate stakeholders heavily prize corporate governance and transparency. A structural shift toward a “power without brakes” model at the top of the FIA is seen by many in the paddock as a direct threat to the stability and commercial reputation of the sport.
The Guardian
