FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem made it clear that Formula One's governing body has a say on who controls the series' commercial rights.
The civil war between the FIA and F1 took another twist this week after Ben Sulayem expressed concern about reports that Saudi Arabia is interested in buying the sport for a mammoth $20billion (£16.15bn) fee.
F1 responded fiercely, insisting that owners Liberty Media has the "exclusive right" to "exploit the commercial rights".
Ben Sulayem is not backing down, however, with his belief that the FIA still has a decisive say on the matter.
"The championship is ours. We have only rented it out," he said at the Monte Carlo rally, per Auto Motor und Sport.
"So far there are only rumours about a possible sale. But the FIA should have a say and be able to offer advice."
Two decades ago, a 100-year lease deal was agreed between the FIA and former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone for a reported fee of $300m (£242m) – a figure significantly lower than the motorsport's current value.
Despite that, it is reported that a 'Don King clause' hands the FIA veto power over any sale.
Ben Sulayem has regularly been at loggerheads with F1 since taking charge of the FIA in December 2021, recently publicly backing Andretti's proposed entry alongside General Motors and adopting a tough stance against drivers wearing jewellery during the 2022 season.
Piquet punished for racist and homophobic slurs aimed at Hamilton as Brazilian lands £780,000 court fine
Brazilian motor racing great Nelson Piquet has been fined around £780,000 for making racist and homophobic comments about seven-time Formula One drivers' champion Lewis Hamilton.
A judge in Brasilia imposed the punishment "for collective moral damages" and it was announced the money would go towards promoting racial equality and fighting LGBTQIA+ discrimination.
It was alleged by campaign groups behind the action that Piquet made comments in a November 2021 interview on YouTube that "violated the diffuse fundamental right to honour of the black population and the LGBTQIA+ community", and that those remarks, directed at Hamilton, went beyond the limits of freedom of expression.
In a statement confirming the punishment for 70-year-old Piquet, who won Formula One titles in 1981, 1983 and 1987, it was said that he denied intending "to harm Hamilton or anyone else's honour".
However, the judge said the discriminatory content was verifiable and determined Piquet's use of the term 'neguinho', which translates as 'little black man', was used when the former driver was being critical of Hamilton.
It was ruled that: "The nuances of language cannot go unnoticed, as subtlety is one of the characteristics of contemporary Brazilian racism: the subjugating element is present, the neguinho is not just any person, he is not a young black man, it is not an affectionate nickname, it is [saying] that the black person is doing something wrong, that he is an inferior race.
"In this context, it is easy to see that the use of the term neguinho by the defendant, a white person, to refer to the black English driver is a conduct that is discriminatory and with harmful meaning".
The judge determined Piquet had also used homophobic language when referring to Hamilton, implying that "being gay would be a negative characteristic, because it means incompetence".
The ruling and fine of five million Brazilian Reals is a punishment that Piquet is entitled to appeal against.
At the time of Piquet's remarks coming to light last June, former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone declared Hamilton should be "happy" he received an apology and ought to have "brushed aside" the Brazilian’s racist slur.
Hamilton responded by referencing Ecclestone and Piquet as "older voices", declaring they have "nothing positive" to contribute.
"We push for action. There needs to be some accountability," Hamilton said.
He added: "I have always tried to take the higher road and be respectful. It ties back to – why do we give them a platform? They are not with the times. They are not willing to change. Microaggression in today's world is not healthy."
MotoGP: Bagnaia wins first sprint race after Marquez revives glory years with pole ride
Francesco Bagnaia triumphed in MotoGP's first sprint race after Marc Marquez snatched pole position for Sunday's Portuguese Grand Prix.
Reigning series champion Bagnaia fended off Jorge Martin in the half-distance sprint, winning by 0.307 seconds, with Marquez taking third position and Jack Miller fourth.
That race came after Marquez rolled back the years by roaring to pole for the sprint and Sunday's main event at the season-opening race weekend.
Six-time MotoGP champion Marquez endured a miserable 2022 season and only achieved one podium, but he reasserted himself as a threat for the new campaign with a dazzling lap record.
He pipped Bagnaia to pole, with Martin starting third on the grid.
It was just Marquez's second pole since his 2019 championship-winning season, with his show-stealing lap coming late on in Q2 after Bagnaia had looked set to bag first position on the grid.
Spaniard Marquez, who turned 30 last month, surprised himself with his qualifying pace.
He said afterwards: "I don't know, I cannot explain because I don't understand, honestly speaking. I don't understand the situation.
"Yesterday we were struggling a lot and today it's true that I started to ride in a better way, I improved myself and the guys yesterday did an incredible job and improved some small details.
"Today in FP3 I already felt good and smooth to ride. I was alone and was consistent."
Marquez senses real limitations with his Repsol Honda RC213V, but he found a way to bypass those in qualifying.
Quoted on motorsport.com, Marquez said: "It's true that to do a very quick lap with the Honda, we need a slipstream. It's not the best way, it's not the most polite way to do a lap time. But it's one of my strongest points.
"So, if the strong point is there, I need to take profit of that. It's not easy to follow a guy, but at the moment it's the only way."
That factor meant Marquez was not likely to be a front-runner in the sprint itself, but third place represented a strong outcome all the same.
Bagnaia's Ducati team-mate Enea Bastianini crashed during the sprint and suffered a right scapula fracture, meaning he was taken to hospital in Portimao.
GRID CLASSIFICATION
1. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) 1 minute 37.226 seconds
2. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) + 0.064 secs
3. Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) + 0.228s
4. Miguel Oliveira (RNF) + 0.295
5. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM) +0.323
6. Enea Bastianini (Ducati) + 0.358
7. Maverick Vinales (Aprilia) + 0.372
8. Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46) + 0.390
9. Luca Marini (Mooney VR46) + 0.396
10. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) + 0.654
SPRINT RESULT
1. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) 19:52.862
2. Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) +0.307
3. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) +1.517
4. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM) +1.603
5. Maverick Vinales (Aprilia) +1.854
6. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia) +2.106
7. Miguel Oliveira (RNF) +2.940
8. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) +5.595
9. Alex Marquez (Gresini) +5.711
10. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) +5.924
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
1. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) 12 points
2. Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) 9
3. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) 7
4. Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM) 6
5. Maverick Vinales (Aprilia) 5
6. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia) 4
7. Miguel Oliveira (RNF) 3
8. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) 2
9. Alex Marquez (Gresini) 1
Wolff: Mercedes missing Lauda's influence in ongoing struggles
Mercedes are missing the influence of Niki Lauda amid their ongoing struggles, team principal Toto Wolff said.
Three-time champion Lauda held a non-executive chairman role with Mercedes until his death in 2019 and played an integral role during the team's dominant years in Formula One.
That spell at the top now seems a million miles away, having conceded the Constructors' Championship to Red Bull last season when they won just a single race.
Mercedes' struggles look set to continue in 2023 after failing to get on the podium in either of the first two races of the season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, where Red Bull dominated.
While the team are in need of development upgrades to close the gap on their rivals, Wolff outlined why the absence of Lauda is also a hindrance.
"Niki's missed all those years because Niki always simplified things to really what mattered," he said.
"I'm having to think what would he have said, and how would he have positioned [things], and the two of us worked well together in that sense that sometimes oversimplification can lead you straight to the results.
"But there are lots of nuances. This is a technical sport, so maybe my role was to translate it in a way that we actually were able to execute it in the car design.
"But this is very simple: the stopwatch never lies, and we see on the data where we are missing and that needs to be corrected."
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