(Motorsport) Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has said that he is unaware of any budget cap breaches amidst reports of being penalised for overspending in the 2021 season. Formula 1 had introduced budget caps last season and Red Bull are allegedly one of the two teams that went over the $145m (£114m) spending limit, with the official announcement regarding the issue on October 5th. If found guilty, Red Bull could face possible financial penalties, points deductions depending on how severe the infringement has been.
Speaking ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, Christian Horner said “We are certainly not aware of any (breaches). The accounts were all submitted way back in March, so it's been a long process with the FIA going through, and we are in that process as we speak. They are rightly following that process and I think mid-next week is when they declare their certificates. Certainly our submission was below the cap and it's down to the FIA to follow their process, which they are currently doing." Horner has also expressed that the regulations are “immature” and their application “subjective”.
In terms of possible penalties, if a Formula 1 team exceeds the $145m budget cap by under 5% they could possibly face point deductions from the Drivers and/or Constructors Championship, suspension from one or more stages of the competition, limitations on ability to conduct aerodynamic or other testing and reduction of cap costs. If a team is found guilty of spending more than 5%, they could face point deductions from the Drivers and/or Constructors Championship, suspension from one or more stages of the competition, suspension from the entire competition, exclusion from the Championship and reduction of the Cap Cost.
Reacting to Horner’s comments, Mercedes principal Toto Wolff said “It's funny that Christian (Horner) has said that because it has been weeks and months that they've been being investigated. So maybe he doesn't speak to his CFO (chief financial officer). All of us have been investigated diligently and, as far as we understand, there is a team that is in minor breach, which is more procedural, and another team that is fundamentally massively over and that is still being looked after. That is an open secret in the paddock.
“I think there is a governance in place that is very solid that the FIA have set up and you are going to be issued a certificate of compliance and if you are not compliant it goes to the cost cap adjudication panel with independent judges, and they can then choose from these penalties the appropriate one. The crucial part is that if you have been over in 2021, then you've been over in 2022 and that means you have an advantage into 2023. If it's true that they formulated a lightweight chassis this year, they may use it the next year, so it's really a cascade of events that can be influential on all of the three championships. This is heavyweight, it's massively heavyweight.
"We are using used parts, we are not running what we want to run, we are not developing what we could be developing. We have made more than 40 people redundant that are dearly missed in our organisation and it was a huge, mammoth operation to make the cap. I don't know how many tens of millions we had to restructure and reprocess in order to be below the cap and if someone has been not doing that or pushing the boundaries, every million is a massive disadvantage. Even if it's the so-called minor breach that can be below five per cent, you can spend seven million more than everybody else, and that means if this is a light penalty, we will all be pushing those five per cent more going forward.
“It is of huge importance for a demonstration that these regulations are policed and I have no reason to believe otherwise. The FIA, particularly Mohammed (Ben Sulayem), has shown a pretty robust stance on enforcing all kinds of regulations. So if we are talking now about something big, he will show the same integrity and leadership that he has done before. I don't know by how much Red Bull have overshot, and where, and what that means as a consequence for last year's championship, this year's championship and next year's championship. The catalogue of potential penalties is huge. And the independent judges will come to their conclusions.
“We have had a massive restructuring process in the organisation to save $50m, and it has been overwhelming, distracting and a development deterrent. If somebody has been challenging that system, it is a major difference between winning and finishing third. We are 10 kilos overweight at the moment, and that is three tenths of a second. For $2m, we could have taken 10 kilos out, and produced two lighter chassis so we are talking about a second or more in performance. I have seen Mohammed act on regulations, minor or major, and what I like in the new system, whether it is Ferrari or Mercedes, is that they just follow the regulations. The FIA will do the right thing, and judge what the impact of such a breach was."
The FIA said in a statement on Friday night: "The FIA is currently finalising the assessment of the 2021 financial data submitted by all Formula 1 teams. Alleged breaches of the Financial Regulations, if any, will be dealt with according to the formal process set out in the regulations. The FIA notes significant and unsubstantiated speculation and conjecture in relation to this matter, and reiterates that the assessment is ongoing and due process will be followed without consideration to any external discussion."
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