Photo: McLaren
Red Bull Racing is currently awaiting the FIA’s decision with regard to punishment for the outfit’s breach of the cost cap during the 2021 Formula 1 season. Aside from going over the cap, the newly crowned F1 constructor champions also committed a procedural offense.
Aston Martin were also found guilty of a procedural breach, and now, both themselves and Red Bull can choose to either accept the FIA’s findings or challenge the matter through the Cost Cap Adjudication panel, reports Motorsport.
One person anxious to see Red Bull get punished is McLaren F1 CEO Zak Brown, who even wrote to the FIA to tell them how critical of a matter he believes this to be, claiming that what they did “constitutes cheating.”
“The overspend breach, and possibly the procedural breaches, constitute cheating by offering a significant advantage across technical, sporting, and financial regulations,” he said in the letter. “The bottom line is any team who has overspent has gained an unfair advantage both in the current and following year’s car development.”
Brown addressed the letter to FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and to F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, although its contents only surfaces after Brown went on to write the same message to all cost cap compliant teams this past weekend, meaning Mercedes, Ferrari, Alpine, Alfa Romeo, Haas and Williams.
He went on to say that there’s no excuse for teams to have to overspend, while adding that a financial penalty alone wouldn’t be enough of a deterrent, meaning that a sporting penalty should be added on top.
“We suggest that the overspend should be penalized by way of a reduction to the team’s cost cap in the year following the ruling and the penalty should be equal to the overspend plus a further fine i.e. an overspend of $2m in 2021, which is identified in 2022, would result in a $4m deduction in 2023 ($2m to offset the overspend plus $2m fine.”
“In addition, we believe there should be minor overspend sporting penalties of a 20% reduction in CFC and wind tunnel time. These should be enforced in the following year, to mitigate against the unfair advantage the team has and will continue to benefit from.”
One person anxious to see Red Bull get punished is McLaren F1 CEO Zak Brown, who even wrote to the FIA to tell them how critical of a matter he believes this to be, claiming that what they did “constitutes cheating.”
“The overspend breach, and possibly the procedural breaches, constitute cheating by offering a significant advantage across technical, sporting, and financial regulations,” he said in the letter. “The bottom line is any team who has overspent has gained an unfair advantage both in the current and following year’s car development.”
Brown addressed the letter to FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and to F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, although its contents only surfaces after Brown went on to write the same message to all cost cap compliant teams this past weekend, meaning Mercedes, Ferrari, Alpine, Alfa Romeo, Haas and Williams.
He went on to say that there’s no excuse for teams to have to overspend, while adding that a financial penalty alone wouldn’t be enough of a deterrent, meaning that a sporting penalty should be added on top.
“We suggest that the overspend should be penalized by way of a reduction to the team’s cost cap in the year following the ruling and the penalty should be equal to the overspend plus a further fine i.e. an overspend of $2m in 2021, which is identified in 2022, would result in a $4m deduction in 2023 ($2m to offset the overspend plus $2m fine.”
“In addition, we believe there should be minor overspend sporting penalties of a 20% reduction in CFC and wind tunnel time. These should be enforced in the following year, to mitigate against the unfair advantage the team has and will continue to benefit from.”
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