FIA president disputes Middle East 'risk' as F1 decision looms

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has voiced confidence that F1 will finish its season in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

Uncertainty looms over the final two rounds of the season due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Earlier in the year, F1 postponed the events in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, with the former ultimately cancelled while the latter moved to Malaysia.

Other racing categories have opted to steer clear of venturing to that region to close out their championships, however F1 is still holding out for the possibility of staging its final two rounds as originally scheduled.

Ben Sulayem has insisted he has no concerns over safety, should they opt to stage the events.

"One thing I would say; I have my children there. I'm here, but they are there. You think I would leave them there, and I am here now with you?

"Also, you have to be sensible in this and say, 'are we going to have an issue?'

"What you read in the media is actually different than we have there. We read, and we see the TV, [and say] where is it?

"We don't have that really. Otherwise, why would I stay there? Why would I leave my family?

"But does this mean that there is nothing going to happen? I can't predict this. I can only tell you today that there is nothing, and the two races are going to happen.

"I don't think the FIA staff would be more important to me than myself and my family. But if I am there, it means I feel secure about it. But we don't know."

Recent reports have suggested that the Dakar Rally could move away from Saudi Arabia in January next year.

While Ben Sulayem insisted that it is safe to venture to Qatar and Abu Dhabi, when speaking about the Dakar Rally, he asserted the FIA is putting personnel safety as its highest priority.

"We will never take our staff or drivers or any officials to a place where we feel it is risky. No way."

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FIA 'ready' for Imola alternative

Should F1 ultimately not opt to race in Qatar and Abu Dhabi to close out the campaign, a replacement race has been touted.

It would see F1 venture back to Imola in Italy to close out the season and would mark the first time in almost three decades that the sport had its final race in Europe.

When asked if FIA would be ready to head to Imola, Ben Sulayem replied: "Of course, FIA is always ready.

"I told the GM to have another ready team from the FIA if there was nothing going on, but maybe some of the governments say, 'you cannot travel'. So what do we do?

"I mean, if everybody is there and then the teams are there and the FOM is running it, and suddenly we say, 'Oh, we cannot have our race director, we cannot have our stewards.

"No. You have to be ready, and you have to have another team ready, just in case."