Former Red Bull F1 team and BMW employee set to take over the role of FIA Sporting Director

F1 regulatory body FIA lost two key personnel over the winter break, Sporting Director Steve Nielsen and Technical Director Tim Goss. Nielsen will be replaced by former Red Bull F1 team and BMW and Sauber employee Tim Malyon.

Formerly the safety director at the FIA, Malyon will replace Nielsen as the Sporting Director and oversee operations related to sporting matters, the race direction, and the Remote Operations Center (ROC) in Geneva.

Commenting on Malyon's appointment, FIA Single Seater Director Nikolas Tombazis was quoted in a FIA press release saying:

“Tim has a wealth of motorsport experience and expertise at the highest level. He will play a major role as we continue to bring rigour to our sporting and regulatory practices and procedures, and he will drive the innovation we have brought to our race control operation. Tim has been pivotal in creating a strong synergy between race control and the ROC with the introduction of new technology including artificial intelligence and state-of-the-art data analysis and processing systems. He will continue to oversee advances in that area as well as taking the lead on the evolution of FIA sporting regulations.”

On being promoted to his new job, Malyon said:

“We have already brought significant change to our race direction operation with the support of the ROC and I look forward to taking that to the next level. We are also committed to a broad regulatory review of sporting matters, and I look forward to applying a sharper focus to those efforts in the future.”

Having previously worked with Red Bull, BMW and Sauber as head of research, the newly appointed sporting director has a wealth of experience in F1 prior to joining the FIA as safety director in 2019. Malyon was popularly known as Sebastian Vettel's performance engineer at the Milton Keynes squad before he joined Sauber.

Serving as safety director at the regulatory body of F1, Malyon was involved in working with the ROC in Geneva and establishing a connection between them and the race direction. Tombazis feels the former Red Bull employee will be a great addition to oversee the evolution of sporting matters and regulations.

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FIA Single Seater Director laments the loss of key F1 personnel

In December 2023, the FIA Sporting Director Steve Nielsen announced his resignation. In January 2024, the Technical Director Tim Goss followed suit and announced his departure. The Single Seater Director Nikolas Tombazis lamented the loss of both the key senior figures of the regulatory body.

Goss, who was a former McLaren employee, had played an integral role in structuring the technical regulations for the 2026 season and beyond. Nielsen had a surprise departure after working for only a year in his role.

Commenting on the departure of Nielsen, Tombazis said in the FIA press release:

“Steve has been a fantastic asset to the single-seater department over the course of the 2023 F1 season and has been part of a crucial year of development and positive steps forward in our activities. There is, of course, still a lot to do, and we will be building on these strong foundations over the coming years. We wish Steve the best for his next challenge.”

Reflecting on a further blow after the departure of Goss, Tombazis said:

“We are disappointed to lose a person of Tim's calibre from the organisation. Tim has played a major part in the technical department and has always operated to the highest level. We understand that his career is taking a new direction going forward and we support and respect his desire to pursue another path, and wish him luck for his future endeavours.”

According to BBC F1, Goss left the FIA as a result of being frustrated with the internal modus operandi of the organization. The former McLaren employee is speculated to move on to an F1 team job in the future.

Having played an integral part in the development of the 2026 regulations, Goss’ knowledge will be a vital asset if he were to join any team. However, the departure of two key senior figures in two months has put the regulatory body in poor limelight, with growing suspicions of internal issues within its hierarchy.