Jan.23 (GMM) FIA president Jean Todt is suing former F1 driver Philippe Streiff.
Having already attracted controversy with comments about Michael Schumacher’s condition, former Renault driver and Frenchman Streiff on Thursday attacked Todt for his handling of the report about Jules Bianchi’s crash.
Later on Thursday, in an official statement issued by F1’s governing body, the FIA said Todt as well as medical commission president Gerard Saillant were “dismayed” by Streiff’s comments.
They also described the comments by Streiff, who was paralysed in a 1989 pre-season crash, as “insulting and defamatory” and “malicious”.
“In view of the seriousness of this deliberate attack on their reputations, they have had to ask their lawyers to lodge a complaint for public defamation and insult so that the circulation of Philippe Streiff’s statements is stopped immediately and sanctioned in an appropriate manner,” the FIA statement added.
“They find it regrettable that this incident only serves to add to the suffering of Jules Bianchi’s family, for whom they would like to reiterate their support.”