Verstappen Calls For Common Sense Amid FIA's Crackdown On Swearing

The FIA. 

A three-letter organization that for some reason decided over the last year or so that they really hate four-letter words; especially in Formula 1.

So much so, in fact, that they're ready to drop hefty fines as high as $120,000, championship points deductions, and even month-long suspensions on drivers whose sailor speak gets the best of them.

As you can guess, this hasn't been a hit with drivers — or fans for that matter — and the reigning four-time champion, Red Bull's Max Verstappen, is calling on the sport's governing body to use a little common sense here.

It’s a lot of money," Verstappen said, according to RACER's Chris Medland. "Honestly, from my side, I think it’s not necessary to be like that with the rules.

"I think you need to use a bit of common sense. Besides that, I prefer that we actually focus on other topics to try and improve safety, try and improve the overall performance of Formula 1 cars, instead of actually having to focus on all these kinds of things. It’s a bit unnecessary, I think."

You think? I think so too.

Max Verstappen called for some common sense as the FIA continues its crackdown on drivers swearing. (Getty Images)

I understand that the sport wants to have as many people watching as possible, which includes kids, and if it suddenly morphs into "Formula 1 After Dark," that won't happen.

But it's not morphing into some kind of blue product. It's an intense sport with a lot of pressure and money and danger involved, and that means that you might get the occasional fleeting expletive.

You know what you do then? Nothing.

The driver can apologize if they want to, and if a parent has to explain to their kid that they can't just drop F-bombs because their favorite driver did, guess what? That's part of being a parent.

The babysitting from the FIA is just ridiculous, and it's bizarre to me that they've leaned into these policies despite pushback from all corners of the sport including drivers and fans.

This appears to be one of the pet causes of FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who will be running for re-election this year. 

However, despite the big penalties, don't expect Verstappen to keep his thoughts to himself.

"It’s a complicated matter, I would say, with that … I always share my opinion," he said. "Like I say now, I think it’s just a bit much. It’s not necessary to put it like that, fully written down."