Mohammed Bin Sulayem

Mohammed Ahmad Sultan Ben Sulayem (; born 12 November 1961) is an Emirati former rally driver and motorsports executive who serves as president of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the governing body of many auto racing events including Formula One.

Ben Sulayem began his career as a rally driver in the 1980s. He became one of the most successful Middle East Rally Championship drivers, winning 14 titles.

In 2005, he became the President of the Emirates Motorsports Organization, the representative of the United Arab Emirates in the FIA. In 2008, he was elected as a Vice President for sport and a member of the FIA World Motor Sport Council. He was key to organizing the first Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2009. In 2012, he was among the founding members and chairman of FIA sub-region of Arab Council of Touring and Automobile Clubs. In December 2021, he was appointed as FIA President, succeeding Jean Todt.

As President of the FIA, Ben Sulayem oversaw the restructuring of race control in 2022. In 2024, Ben Sulayem was subject to whistleblower complaints involving the certification of the Las Vegas Strip Circuit, and attempting to intervene in the results of the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. In 2025, he was criticized for driver punishments regarding misconduct and poor governance.

In September 2024, Ben Sulayem was appointed as UN Tourism's Ambassador for Sustainable Tourism in the Sport category in recognition of his efforts in integrating sustainability into global motorsport.

Early life and education

Sulayem was born on 12 November 1961 in Dubai, Trucial States (now United Arab Emirates). He studied business at American University in Washington, D.C. where he graduated with a bachelor's degree.

Racing career

Ben Sulayem competed in the Middle East Rally Championship driving for Toyota and Ford. He won his first title in 1986 with a Toyota Celica and went on to win six consecutive titles through to 1991. In 1994, he won his seventh title with a Ford Escort RS Cosworth. From 1996 to 2002, Ben Sulayem won a further seven titles with Ford, making him the most successful driver in the championship with over 60 wins and 14 titles (both the records have since been broken by Nasser Al-Attiyah).

Administrative career

In 2005, he became the President of the Emirates Motorsports Organization, the representative of the UAE in FIA. In 2008, he was elected as a Vice President for sport and a member of the FIA World Motor Sport Council, and he was key to organizing the first Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2009. In 2012, he was among the founding members and chairman of FIA sub-region of Arab Council of Touring and Automobile Clubs.

In June 2013, he was appointed as the chairman of the new Motor Sport Development Task Force set up by the FIA to build a ten-year plan for the sport's global development. In December 2021, he was appointed as the FIA President succeeding Jean Todt.

FIA president

In December 2021, Ben Sulayem was appointed as FIA President, succeeding Jean Todt.

Restructuring of race control

In 2022, Ben Sulayem oversaw the investigation into the controversial ending of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The race ended with a last lap shootout when the Race Director (Michael Masi) brought in the safety car on the same lap as allowing lapped cars to unlap themselves. This was in breach of F1 regulations, which require the safety car to stay out for an additional lap after releasing lapped cars. The investigation concluded that there was no mechanism to change the results. However, the FIA President has the power to refer to the FIA International Court of Appeal (ICA) for them to decide whether the result was legitimate. This option is available until at least March 2027.

Ben Sulayem replaced Michael Masi as race director with Niels Wittich and Eduardo Freitas in an effort to modernize race operations and restore public trust.

Whistleblower complaints

On 5 March 2024, the FIA confirmed its compliance officer received two whistleblower complaints. The whistleblower stated that Ben Sulayem told FIA officials to declare the Las Vegas Strip Circuit unsafe for racing and not certify the circuit for the 2023 race. Ben Sulayem was also investigated for allegedly attempting to intervene in the results of the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

Driver swearing punishments

In November 2024, Ben Sulayem faced criticism by the Grand Prix Drivers Association (GPDA) after both Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc received punishment for swearing in FIA press conferences. Verstappen received an FIA community service order ahead of the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, whilst Leclerc received a €10,000 fine. The GPDA responded with an open letter.

In 2025, Ben Sulayem was criticized for the change in the International Sporting Code, which imposed guidelines of language and misconduct, stating that language or action resulting in the "moral injury or loss to the FIA, its bodies, its members or its executive officers" can be punished in the form of fines, deduction of championship points and suspensions, depending on the frequency of said breaches. Similar to the GPDA, World Rally Championship drivers formed the World Rally Drivers Alliance (WoRDA) after driver Adrien Fourmaux received a €10,000 fine for swearing during an interview after the conclusion of Rally Sweden. The alliance protested by refusing to speak in interviews or only speak in their mother tongue to explain their decision during Safari Rally Kenya.

Governance issues

At the direction of Ben Sulayem, the FIA has taken steps to limit accountability. Multiple senior officials within the FIA have either resigned or been fired after investigating and raising concerns with Ben Sulayem's governance of the organisation. In February 2025, the Chair of Motorsport UK, David Richards, and the FIA Deputy President for Sport, Robert Reid, were barred from a World Motor Sport Council meeting after refusing to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). Motorsport UK and Richards subsequently threatened the FIA with legal action, while Reid resigned from his post in April 2025, citing "a fundamental breakdown in governance standards within motorsport's global governing body". Following the news of Reid's resignation, former CEO of the FIA, Natalie Robyn, who was forced to resign in May 2024 following disagreements with Ben Sulayem, said that there were "serious ongoing structural challenges" within the organisation.

An article from ''BBC'' stated that FIA insiders speculated that the NDA requirement was introduced by Ben Sulayem to avoid negative press around possible changes to FIA statutes, which would make it harder for anyone to stand against him in the FIA elections later in the year. In May 2025, BBC reported that they had obtained a copy of the proposed changes that were to be voted on the following month. One change seeks to ban candidates for president who have anything in their record "that calls into question their professional integrity", which is speculated to be targeted at Carlos Sainz Sr, who has declared interest in running for president and whose son Carlos Sainz Jr. competes in Formula One. Among the other changes include giving the president power to pick all members of the FIA senate, without oversight from other members of the senate, preventing more than two members of the same nationality from being elected to the World Motor Sport Council, and bringing forward the date of presidential candidates to declare their teams from 21 days before to 49 days before the election. All these changes are said to make it easier for the president and his allies to exclude potential challengers ahead of the 2025 elections.

Personal life

Sulayem is a prominent car collector and owns multiple supercars including Koenigsegg Agera RS, Koenigsegg Regera, Koenigsegg Chimera, Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, Porsche, McLaren, Bugatti, Jaguar, Lexus, Ford GT, Lamborghini, and Rolls-Royce.

In July 2012, he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Science from the University of Ulster in recognition of his services to sport, civic leadership and charity.

On 7 March 2023, one of Ben Sulayem's sons, Saif Ben Sulayem, died in a road accident in Dubai.

Controversy

In January 2023, ''The Times'' newspaper resurfaced comments Ben Sulayem made on his now archived website from 2001. The newspaper quoted Sulayem as saying he did not like "women who think they are smarter than men, for they are not in truth." The veracity of the quotes was not refuted by Sulayem. The FIA defended him saying "the remarks in this archived website from 2001 do not reflect the president's beliefs."

Honors

*14 X Middle East Rally Championship (1986-91, 1994, 1996-2002)

Individual

Individual honors won include:
*Medal of Honour, King Hussein of Jordan (1986)
*President's Cup, President Amine Gemayel of Lebanon (1987)
*Medal of Honour, President Emile Lahoud of Lebanon (1999)
*Medal of Honour, King Abdullah II of Jordan (1999)
*Medal of Honour, King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa of Bahrain (2004)
*UAE Sportsman of the Century, Agence France-Presse (AFP)

Racing record

Complete WRC results

References

External links

Mohammed Ben Sulayem

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sulayem, Mohammed Ben
1961 births
Living people
Emirati rally drivers
Sportspeople from Dubai
Middle East Rally Championship
Presidents of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile
FIA people