Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said on Tuesday that the relationship between Red Bull and Mercedes must be recovered, after the intense battle the two teams were locked in this year.

The Italian was speaking to Autosport after he was awarded the prestigious Lorenzo Bandini Award in Italy on Tuesday night, on the back of his first season as F1 CEO.

Needless to say, 2021 was a season for the history books, with the Championship fight between Mercedes and Red Bull, and their drivers Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen respectively becoming nasty and persona at one point, as Toto Wolff and Christian Horner took the animosities to another level.

Responding to whether he had any concerns for 2022, Domenicali said: “Those who live with certainties mean that they sleep well!

“But we have many doubts and we have to face them. We have issues that will eventually have to be managed,” he acknowledged.

The F1 chief touched on the level of hostility witnessed between the title-contending teams and their respective bosses, Wolff and Horner

“We will have to evaluate day-by-day the relationship that must be recovered between Red Bull and Mercedes, to avoid the personal clashes that we have seen that serve no benefit,” he pointed out.

Better remain silent about Abu Dhabi for now

Domenicali then revealed that the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP controversy has been raised with newly elected FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, Jean Todt’s successor.

“We have already spoken with the president,” he said.

“We talked about the priorities he will have to face, and there are many.

“But, at this stage, it is right to remain silent so as not to create further controversy in an area that was very overheated,” Domenicali cautioned, before shedding light on the 2021 season’s positives.

“But I would like to say that we come from an extraordinary season, followed by more than two billion people,” he went on.

“The last Abu Dhabi GP was the most followed sporting event in 2021.

“These are stratospheric numbers that we must be proud of,” the former Ferrari boss said.

As to what he predicts for the FIA under the new leadership, the 56-year-old Italian said: “With the change of presidency within the FIA ​​there may also be a change in the balance within the FIA, which for us has an absolutely fundamental role.”

Domenicali has taken over as CEO and President of Formula 1 last January, replacing American Chase Carey in the role, thus becoming the second CEO of the sport under the ownership of Liberty Media.