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Abu Dhabi: The top minds from sport have full-heartedly backed Formula 1’s sustainability plan that envisages a net-zero carbon footprint by 2030.
The sustainability plan was presented earlier this month following intense work over more than a year between the FIA, sustainability experts, Formula 1 teams, promoters and allied partners connected with the pinnacle of motorsport. This initiative is meant to cover the Formula 1 cars and on-track activity and the rest of the operations as a sport.
As per the ambitious, yet achievable plan, carbon reduction projects will begin immediately to start the journey of Formula 1 becoming a more sustainable sport in the future. “We are having the most efficient hybrid power units and it is essential that we take the next defining step in conserving and preserving our sport and planet at the same time. F1 was always the pinnacle of motor racing, and it will always be. So when we do something, there are others who will want to emulate or follow us. So it is necessary that we do what we are in a position to achieve for all our sake. After all, all of us are on the same earth,” Mercedes boss Toto Wolff told media on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, on Friday.
“We have found a way and we continue to find ways to get better as a sport and as an industry. We have a role to play and the more we support all such initiatives, the better it is to have a more sustainable world,” he added.
Scuderia Ferrari’s Mattia Binotto, who came in place of Maurizio Arrivabene as team principal at the beginning of this year, struck a similar chord. “It is nice to see that all of us are on the same page. It is definitely a challenging objective, but as Formula 1 we have to be the leaders and show the way,” Binotto observed.
“There is a lot of engineering background among us and we are in a position to use all this to have a better world. And yes, it needs all of us to come together with the FIA and others to address such an important issue that affects all of us,” the 50-year-old Italian insisted.
McLaren’s CEO Zak Brown threw in his hat as well. “Sustainability is a very big topic. It is rather like a journey with a never-ending road. I think as a sport we are moving forward and the time limit we have is good enough and achievable,” he noted.
“We are always looking at putting the importance it needs as it is an important topic for everybody concerned,” added the Surrey-based American.
Renault’s Cyril Abiteboul, the youngest of the team principals at 43 insisted that the sport’s minds ought to carry the programme through. “As a sport we need to be part of the solution,” he said.
“Through the announcement, we have created a lot of expectation, not just on ourselves but also on our sport and the industry at large. We need to now stand by what we have been talking about,” the 43-year-old Frenchman added.
ROKiT Williams Racing’s Claire Williams was all in favour too. “This sport needs to be doing what it should be doing, and I think we are on the right track here,” she said.
“We need to do so as collectives and tackle these sort of issues. Right now, we are doing a job by talking about it, and I think a ten-year period is the right amount of time to tackle the issue,” she added.
