F1 Race Directors Eduardo Freitas And Niels Wittich Have Tested Positive For Covid Ahead Of Miami GP
Written By Uche Dozie
The two race directors must show a negative test result before they can travel to the United States of the Miami Open.
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Formula one has been placed in a tight corner with the news of its race directors Niels Wittich and Eduardo Freitas testing positive for Covid ahead of the next race at Miami.
The news raises concerns about who will take charge as race director of next week’s inaugural Miami Open as the race directors need to go to the United States with a clean bill.
Wittich and Freitas took over from Michael Masi this season after the Australian lost his job as a result of the fallout from last year’s title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
News of Wittich and Freitas’s positive tests was relayed to teams at Tuesday’s controversial meeting of the F1 Commission in London.
Wittich who is the former race director of the DTM German touring car series has been in charge of the four races so far this season.
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The role was to be alternated between the two, but Freitas, who has worked in Le Mans 24 Hours, WEC, ELMS and Asian LMS, is also down with the virus although the Portuguese was already committed to the World Endurance Championship event at Spa on the same weekend, so was not due to travel to Florida according to motorsport.com.
The Telegraph reports that although the likelihood is that one or both of Wittich or Freitas will be fine to take charge in Miami, there is no guarantee that either will recover in time. They must show a negative test to travel to the United States. And even if they are negative, they may still feel unwell.
Former deputies, Formula E race director Scot Elkins, Herbie Blash are alternatives that could be called upon if the situation remains the same.
FIA veteran Colin Haywood, who was called back from retirement at the start of this year to fill in when Freitas was busy at WEC events, was always scheduled to perform the deputy role for the Miami weekend.
Meanwhile…
The FIA have confirmed helmet cameras will be mandatory for all drivers from 2023 onwards.
After the trials of cameras in Bell helmets since Spa last year it has been agreed to update the 2023 F1 Technical Regulations “mandating the use of these helmet cameras for all drivers from 2023 onwards.”
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