Thus, Wolff's Solomon-like approach falls flat: "Those who want to drive should drive. Those who don't want to should leave it. It's that simple, and everyone can make their own decision - I respect that."
Not without the slightly threatening addition: "Maybe that's also an opportunity to give someone else a chance."
What does the GPDA say?
Formula 1 itself refers to "international guidelines," i.e. travel restrictions, flight cancellations, warnings, and government assessments.
"In my opinion, you have to be able to rely on that," Wolff notes.
However, it is a fact that, from the perspective of his home country, the third of four possible travel warning levels applies to Qatar and Abu Dhabi. It is also a fact that airlines like Lufthansa have postponed resuming flights to the United Arab Emirates until late November.
For now, astonishingly little is heard from the F1 drivers themselves about their desire to put themselves in this situation. Given the latent urge not to ruffle any feathers anywhere, that is hardly surprising. All the more respect to Marc Marquez.
Unlike their MotoGP counterparts, however, they have a union at hand with the GPDA that could exert pressure much more effectively.
It can hardly get any closer
In the end, it will be — as is so often the case — a choice between "money" or "sport."
The stakes are high, because the consequences of an incident would be unbearable. The probability may be low, but in Jeddah 2022 a missile strike just a few kilometers from the track became a reality. Probably for that reason as well, the threshold for pain seems to be (too) high.
On the track, the mantra "safety comes above all" has taken root after many tragedies. Off the track, the factors of money and politics are still tugging at reason.
