Budget cap in Formula 1: equal opportunities… or almost

Over the past ten years, the Formula 1 has undergone profound changes. A calendar exponential, the appearance of numerous urban circuits, the arrival of the Safety Halo (which has already saved many lives!), a major technical revolution with the return of ground effect single-seaters (2022), preceding a new upcoming era centered on new hybrid engines (2026) that are even more electric, not to mention the new generation of talented drivers who have arrived in the wake of a Netflix series (Drive to Survive) which attracted a whole new, younger and female audience.

None of this, however, has shaken up the industry more than another major introduction that came into force in 2021: the budget cap, unanimously welcomed by players and observers alike. “Establishing financial regulations was the best decision made in F1 in over twenty years,” regularly insists Frédéric Vasseur, the boss of the Team Ferrari.

Before the introduction of the cap budget, the big teams spent lavishly, both in winter when giving birth to their machines, and during the rest of the season when it came to improving them. There weren't really any restrictions.