Alexander Wurz called for research into the impact of a driver salary cap – but said there are no plans on the table right now to implement such a policy in Formula 1.
The Austrian is a veteran of 69 F1 races in his own driving career, which spanned 11 seasons between 1997 and 2007. He has been chairman of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA) since 2014, working with the other directors Sebastian Vettel, George Russell and lawyer Anastasia Fowle.
A driver salary cap has been proposed in the past, to potentially be implemented alongside the new annual budget constraints with which each team has to comply. At present, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen are the highest paid drivers with annual salaries of around £35m each.
F1 bosses have spoken about a salary cap and earlier this summer Mercedes chief Toto Wolff advocated for one to be introduced. But that was met with plenty of opposition by racers, with Verstappen and Fernando Alonso among those who have been particularly vocal about it.
It seems they need not worry for now, though, as GPDA chief Wurz told RacingNews365 there is nothing concrete in place on that issue. "There was one meeting where the GPDA made it very clear what they thought," said the former Benetton, McLaren and Williams driver.
"Why vote against our self-interest? We said we wanted to see who ultimately benefits from this and what the consequences are for the wider sport. That needs to be researched first. After that we can ask: can that become a rule, and should the FIA consider it?
"Is it actually possible because it is from a commercial point of view? We can also ask whether it cannot simply be an agreement between the teams themselves. I do not know the latest news and the current intention. It is up to the FIA or the teams that make an agreement among themselves."
Drivers will naturally want to avoid their earning potential being curbed, but some racers have also raised valid points about the impact of such a scheme on the junior racing series'. Verstappen said it could stop a lot of aspiring young drivers from having the chance to live out their dreams as limited earnings would be less attractive for sponsors.
And Lando Norris agreed, adding: "It's difficult enough to get into F1 at all, so as soon as you have a backer or investment as a driver, they obviously want their money back at some point. Obviously if it gets capped, it's much harder or will interest people much less to ever invest into young drivers and invest into people having chances to get into F1 in the first place."
