Susie Wolff files criminal complaint against Formula One’s governing body

Story by Giles Richards • THE GUARDIAN

Susie Wolff has taken legal action against the FIA following its inquiry into her last year. Photograph: Antonin Vincent/DPPI/Shutterstock

Susie Wolff, the managing director of the all-female series the F1 Academy, has filed a criminal complaint against Formula One’s governing body, the FIA, over allegations made last year against her and her husband, the Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, which were found to be unsubstantiated.

Wolff and her husband were the subject of a conflict of interest investigation brought by the FIA in December 2023, after an allegation that confidential information was being passed between a team member and a member of the sport’s owners Formula One Management (FOM). It was centred on Toto Wolff and his wife, who is in charge of the F1 Academy, the series which is owned and run by FOM.

Both parties strongly denied the allegation and within 48 hours of it beginning the investigation, the FIA concluded neither party had a case to answer.

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Wolff was unequivocal at the time that she felt she and her husband had suffered huge reputational damage as a result of the FIA instigating the investigation and making it public. On Wednesday she made it clear she would be taking the matter further in a post on social media.

“I can confirm that I have personally filed a criminal complaint in the French courts on the 4 March in relation to the statements made about me by the FIA last December,” she wrote. “There has still not been any transparency or accountability in relation to the conduct of the FIA and its personnel in this matter.

“I feel more than ever it is important to stand up, call out improper behaviour and make sure people are held to account. Whilst some may think silence absolves them from responsibility – it does not.”

After the investigation was announced there was an almost immediate backlash from across F1. The following day, in what must be considered an almost unprecedented move, every one of the other nine F1 teams issued a near identical statement confirming they had made no complaints about information being passed and expressing unanimous support for the F1 Academy.

The incident and the FIA’s subsequent climbdown was humiliating for the governing body, especially given it did not explain the rationale behind its actions.

The decision to investigate appears to have been prompted by one, unsubstantiated media report alleging Wolff had made a comment that could only have been informed by information from a member of FOM personnel. The FIA cited “media speculation” over the issue as part of its reasoning to investigate but there was little beyond that single source.

The reaction to it was swift. Mercedes resolutely condemned the investigation as did Wolff, who called it “insulting” and rooted “in intimidatory and misogynistic behaviour”. FOM were similarly robust, warning caution against “making imprudent and serious allegations without substance”.

Since the incident the FIA has not issued any apology or any further explanation of their actions, citing its policy not to reveal the details of complaints or the assessment of them publicly.

With the case Wolff is bringing, the embattled body is set to face intense scrutiny of its policies and practices. Earlier on Wednesday it announced it had concluded its own investigation into allegations of complaints of interference into races by its president Mohammed ben Sulayem and cleared him entirely but once more without revealing any details of the process or the complaints.