Race director
The race director is the FIA official who runs the event itself — deploying the safety car, stopping a session with a red flag, and setting the standards drivers race to.
The role covers everything about how the session is conducted: when to neutralise, when to restart, when conditions are too poor to continue.
It is distinct from the stewards, who judge incidents and issue penalties. The race director refers matters to them rather than deciding them, a separation that was tightened after the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.