Wikipedia

Grand Prix Drivers' Association

The Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA) is the trade union of Formula One drivers. Founded in 1961 and refounded in 1994, it has organised several drivers' strikes and boycotts over the years, primarily in response to unsafe circuits on the F1 calendar and other driver safety issues.

Grand Prix Drivers' Association
Formationformed: 11 May 1961
disbanded: (February) 1982
reformed: (13) May 1994
HeadquartersMonaco Monaco
Chairman
Austria Alexander Wurz
Directors

Background

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First GPDA

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The GPDA was founded in May 1961 and, following an election by members, its inaugural Chairman was Stirling Moss. After Moss retired from the sport in 1963, Jo Bonnier succeeded him.[1]

The organisation's initial aim was to obtain representation on the Commission Sportive Internationale (CSI) of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) to advocate for improved safety standards and provisions for both drivers and spectators.[1] The GPDA organised driver boycotts of the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (1969)[2] and the Nürburgring (1970, post-1976).[3][4]

The organisation fractured during the FISA–FOCA war, during which drivers in teams aligned with FISA (mostly auto manufacturer teams like Ferrari) clashed with drivers in FOCA teams (mostly private racing teams like McLaren or Williams).[5] GPDA chairman Jody Scheckter, a Ferrari driver, used his GPDA role to take FISA's side in the conflict, arguing that ground effect cars (pioneered by the FOCA teams) were unsafe for drivers.[6][7] In response, several drivers for FOCA teams, including Alan Jones and Nelson Piquet, resigned from the GPDA.[8]

In addition, the GPDA organised a successful drivers' strike at the 1982 South African Grand Prix after FISA proposed new regulations that gave them wider grounds to strip drivers of their FIA Super Licenses,[5] although in that case, FOCA agreed with FISA's position.[9] The drivers defeated the regulations but were fined and sanctioned by the FIA. Following the strike, a number of drivers met to disband the GPDA and replace it with the Professional Racing Drivers Association (PRDA), which theoretically extended to all professional drivers.[10] The PRDA never matched the prominence or effectiveness of the original GPDA, and was said to have "faded away."[4]

Second GPDA

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Ahead of the 1994 season, the FIA banned electronic driver aids such as active suspension and traction control.[11][12] The speed of the change (the FIA was so eager to implement the ban that it initially suggested imposing the ban in the middle of the 1993 season[12]) was criticised by several drivers, who believed that it would lead to unsafe design flaws in the 1994 cars. Williams' Ayrton Senna publicly complained that the 1994 cars were less safe and predicted "lots of accidents," and McLaren's Martin Brundle claimed that because of the rushed nature of the changes, the drivers had "less control of the car" than in years past.[13]

Ahead of the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, Senna proposed re-forming the GPDA to give the drivers a unified voice in support of safety reforms. However, Senna and Roland Ratzenberger were both killed by on-track accidents during that race weekend.[14][15]

Before the following race, the 1994 Monaco Grand Prix, Niki Lauda, Christian Fittipaldi, Michael Schumacher, and Gerhard Berger re-established the GPDA, with assistance from Martin Brundle.[16] In its early days, the GPDA was opposed by FIA president Max Mosley, who claimed that non-drivers were interfering with the organisation.[17]

In 1996, the GPDA was incorporated as a UK company limited by guarantee ("Grand Prix Drivers Association Ltd").[18] For the first time, the association had a formal corporate constitution and permanent offices in Monaco.[17] The first directors of the incorporated GPDA were Brundle, Schumacher, and Berger.[19]

Driver safety initiatives

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Since 1994, the GPDA's primary mission has been to improve safety on track. The GPDA threatened to boycott the 2013 German Grand Prix after a series of dangerous tyre blowouts at the British Grand Prix.[20][21] The GPDA also pushed for stricter safety regulations at private team testing sessions, an area that the FIA traditionally did not regulate.[22][23] In 2006, Williams' Alexander Wurz, a future GPDA chairman, said that the GPDA's safety push had helped cut the drivers' casualty insurance premiums by nearly half.[22]

Aftermath of the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix

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See also: Death of Ayrton Senna § Safety improvements

Following Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger's deaths at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, the reformed GPDA asked the FIA to limit speeds in dangerous areas and improve safety technology.[24] For example, during the 1994 season, temporary chicanes were installed at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya's Nissan corner[25] and the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps' Eau Rouge/Raidillon complex.[26] In addition, a pit lane speed limit was introduced, and tracks were revised to provide larger run-off areas at the most dangerous corners.[27]

2005 tyre war controversy

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In 2005, Michelin belatedly realised that its tyres could not handle the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's steeply banked Turn 13, prompting the teams with Michelin tyre contracts to drop out of the United States Grand Prix. Ferrari, which had a Bridgestone tyre contract, participated and won the race.[28] Following the race, the FIA sought to punish the Michelin teams for dropping out. In response, the drivers for the Michelin-supplied teams issued a statement arguing that their teams acted appropriately to protect their drivers' safety. However, the GPDA chairman, Ferrari's Michael Schumacher (who won the race), publicly opposed the statement and denied that the GPDA was involved in the statement. Complicating matters, Jarno Trulli (the polesitter, who was forced to drop out) contradicted Schumacher and characterised the statement as a GPDA statement.[29]

Later that year, FIA president Max Mosley cancelled a meeting with the GPDA to discuss the Michelin tyre dispute and proposed safety measures at F1 teams' private test sessions, purportedly in retaliation for statements made by David Coulthard. Mosley claimed Coulthard's statements to the media were a "distortion" of the purpose of the meeting and accused him of stirring up dissent. In response, the GPDA stated that Mosley had threatened to withdraw his support for the GPDA's safety initiatives.[30]

Aftermath of the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix

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Jules Bianchi was fatally injured at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix and died after several months in a coma. Following his death, the GPDA issued a statement saying that it felt a responsibility "to never relent in improving safety."[31] The GPDA participated in the FIA's official review of the events of the Japanese GP.[32] It also encouraged new safety reforms, including the "halo" cockpit protection device,[33] which Formula One (and some drivers[33]) initially resisted.[34]

2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

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See also: 2022 Jeddah missile attack

During the weekend of the 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, the GPDA held a four-hour meeting to discuss multiple missile attacks in the Jeddah region, some as close as 10km from the Jeddah Corniche Circuit. After discussing the issue with Saudi government officials and FIA regulators, it eventually issued a statement confirming that the drivers would participate, despite their "natural concerns" about driver and team safety.[35]

Other activities

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Under the leadership of Alexander Wurz (who became the GPDA chairman in 2014), the organisation grew "increasingly proactive in looking beyond [solely driver safety] to a more holistic bigger picture" about the structure and governance of the sport.[36] In 2023, director George Russell explained that the GPDA was broadly concerned with three main topics: driver safety, "on-track entertainment," and "how it feels to drive the cars",[37] although he subsequently noted that the role had grown unexpectedly political.[38]

Racing regulations

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In 2017, following Liberty Media's purchase of the Formula One Group, the GPDA sent Liberty a letter encouraging it to revise F1's sporting regulations to encourage closer racing. Wurz explained that "we all love one great natural overtaking much more than ten or more DRS overtakes." However, he also credited Ross Brawn and Pat Symonds with helping push for new regulations, which debuted in 2022.[39] Motor Sport had previously noted that the drivers almost unanimously criticised regulation changes rolled out before the 2017 season, which they felt "will make overtaking even more difficult than it actually is."[36]

Sporting governance

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The GPDA became increasingly critical of Bernie Ecclestone's leadership during his final years in charge of Formula One. In 2015, the GPDA and Motorsport.com jointly organised a fan survey,[40][41] which Wurz interpreted as saying that the fans (like him) "do not want [Formula One] to become an artificial show with gimmicks introduced to simply make it more entertaining".[42] He added that "F1's business has become too important, jeopardising our sport."[43] In 2016, following changes to the qualifying system, the GPDA released a statement calling F1's decision making "obsolete" and "ill-structured". The GPDA believed that the decision making could "jeopardise F1's future success."[44] Ecclestone angrily dismissed the GPDA's statement, saying that the drivers were "only saying what their teams have told them to say"[45] and that they had no right to a say in F1 decisions because they had never invested money into the sport.[46]

In November 2024, the GPDA released a public statement outlining several grievances against the FIA including the issue of drivers swearing during races, the tone and language of the FIA President (Mohammed Ben Sulayem) in public statements, and the policy surrounding driver fines.[47][48][49] In addition, that year, GPDA director George Russell requested more transparency from the FIA after a series of personnel changes.[50]

Super License fees

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The GPDA occasionally protests when the FIA raises the price of the FIA Super License, which all drivers must receive in order to compete in F1. In 2009, the GPDA explained that while it would not oppose reasonable price increases, "Super Licence fees should not be a revenue stream for the FIA" and "as a principle, the drivers should not be taxed to fund the costs of others fulfilling their legal duty to the drivers."[51] The FIA eventually agreed to cut Super License fees ahead of the 2010 season.[52]

Membership and leadership

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Membership of GPDA is not compulsory. During the 2017 season, nine drivers and two free practice drivers declined to join.[53] However, by the end of the year, every F1 driver agreed to join the organisation for possibly the first time in association history.[54][55]

Over the years, drivers have declined to join the organisation for a variety of reasons, such as Lewis Hamilton (lack of time and excessive entry fees),[56][57] Michael Schumacher (personal distaste for the GPDA chairman),[58] Kimi Räikkönen (lack of interest),[57] and Max Verstappen (felt attacked by several drivers who were GPDA members and doubtful of the organisation's effectiveness),[59] although Hamilton, Schumacher, Räikkönen, and Verstappen all eventually reconsidered.[60][58][55][61]

GPDA members elect their representatives. As of 2024, there are three directors: active Formula One driver George Russell, legal adviser Anastasia Fowle (the first non-F1 driver past or present to be appointed a GPDA director) and former Formula One driver Alexander Wurz, who serves as chairman.[62][63][64] In addition, former F1 driver Sebastian Vettel is still listed as a director on the Companies House website as of December 2024,[18] although he stepped down from active leadership that February.[65]

List of chairmen

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Chairman Years of service
  Stirling Moss 1961–1963
  Jo Bonnier 1963–1971
  Jackie Stewart 1972–1978
  Jody Scheckter 1979–1980
  Didier Pironi 1980–1982
GPDA disbanded 1982–1994
  Michael Schumacher 1994–2005
  David Coulthard 2005–2006
  Ralf Schumacher 2006–2008
  Pedro de la Rosa 2008–2010, 2012–2014
  Nick Heidfeld 2010
  Rubens Barrichello 2010–2012
  Alexander Wurz 2014–present

List of directors

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Note: from 1996[66][67][68][69][70]

Director Years As chairman
  Michael Schumacher 1996–2005 1996–2005
  Gerhard Berger 1996
  Martin Brundle 1996
  Damon Hill 1996–1998
  David Coulthard 1996–2006 2005–2006
  Alexander Wurz 1998–2001
2014–present 		2014–present
  Jarno Trulli 2001–2006
  Mark Webber 2003–2005
2006–2010
  Ralf Schumacher 2006–2007 2006–2008
  Fernando Alonso 2006–2010
  Pedro de la Rosa 2008–2010
2012–2014 		2008–2010
2012–2014
  Nick Heidfeld 2010 2010
  Felipe Massa 2010–2013
  Sebastian Vettel 2010–present
  Rubens Barrichello 2010–2011 2010–2011
  Jenson Button 2013–2017
  Romain Grosjean 2017–2020
  George Russell 2021–present
  Anastasia Fowle 2021–present

See also

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References

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  64. ^ Cooper, Sam (8 February 2024). "Another hint dropped on Sebastian Vettel's F1 future with update on GPDA role". PlanetF1. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
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  66. ^ "Trulli elected to GPDA". 25 May 2001.
  67. ^ Noble, Jonathan (29 September 2006). "Alonso elected as GPDA director". autosport.com. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
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  70. ^ "All change at the GPDA".
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