Between Red Bull and the FIA, the lying poker continues

Two weeks after the cross press releases of the FIA et Red Bull regarding the excess of the 2021 cap budget by the Austrian team, the return of the F1, this weekend in Austin, inevitably promised to be Rock'n Roll, especially in Texas! If the little chivalrous stroll de Daniel Ricciardo in the paddock put smiles on everyone's faces, the old partisan refrains quickly took over.

For context, first of all, the FIA ​​formalized last week the overtaking by Red Bull of the 2021 budget ceiling ($145 million, Editor's note), specifying that this was, however, a minor violation of the financial regulations (overrun of less than 5%), without however announcing any specific sanction against the world champion team in 2021. In the process, the can giant responded with a short press release, ensuring that it was in line with financial fair play, while specifying that it would “all options open” depending on what the FIA ​​decides. In the meantime, Zak Brown, the boss of McLaren, spoke in a letter sent to the FIA, demanding financial but above all sporting sanctions for the credibility of Formula 1. 

The FIA ​​would have proposed an ABA to Red Bull

This Thursday, at the beginning of the afternoon Texas time (early evening in France), our colleagues from the with the BBC restarted the machine by explaining that the FIA ​​had proposed a “accepted breach agreement” (which could be translated as agreement to accept an offense) to Red Bull, which is one of the options available to the legislator in the case of a minor offense like the one of which he was guilty the Austrian team.

This modus operandi has the advantage of clarifying the rest of the operations. According to Financial regulations, when the FIA ​​offers an acceptance agreement and the team concerned accepts it, the latter undertakes to recognize the infringement and not to appeal the decision taken by the FIA. On the other hand, it ensures a narrower range of punishments, ranging from financial penalties to certain minor sporting sanctions governed by the regulations, such as reprimands, suspension of an event, or even certain aerodynamic limitations (Article 6.29). Concretely, if Red Bull accepts the ABA, it would ensure not to receive a points deduction or a potential reduction in its 2023 cap budget.

This is the first difficult file to manage for the new team in charge at the FIA. © Florent Gooden / DPPI

Neither the FIA ​​nor Red Bull have publicly communicated in recent hours regarding the ABA. Some of our colleagues suggest that an exceptional press conference could be held by the Red Bull in Austin this Friday, the Milton Keynes team wanting to demonstrate its good faith and explain why it considers itself to be in the nails. Contacted by AUTOhebdo, Red Bull replied that there was nothing confirmed yet on this subject, without however denying the information.

Does the FIA ​​lack transparency? 

About the Sergio Perez at a press conference this Thursday, nevertheless suggested that Red Bull had not changed its position since its press release published ten days ago. “We think we’re on target, hammered the Mexican. And everything will be back to normal. I leave the resolution of this matter to the team of course, in collaboration with the FIA. It's mainly the other teams who want to take you out of performance, especially when you win. It's part of the sport, it always has been. This is a normal situation. In the end, the truth will triumph, people will see and understand the situation.”

On social networks, fans immediately feared a lack of transparency on the part of the FIA, with the underlying fear of an opaque secret agreement, as was the case at the end of 2019 with Ferrari for a technical infraction on his power unit. In the case of an ABA, it is mentioned in article 6.32 that the administration in charge of the cost cap would be required to publish a summary of the terms of the agreement, detailing the infraction and the sanctions taken, without however reveal possible confidential information that could harm the team concerned. 

Valtteri Bottas calls for severity against Red Bull. © Xavi Bonilla / DPPI

As an eminent member of the FIA ​​told us last week, in the event of non-acceptance of the ABA by Red Bull, the team would go before a specialized jury, and would be likely to legally receive all the sanctions available for a minor violation. The competition still hopes for strong sanctions. At a press conference, Carlos Sainz called for "clarity", to a decision “fair and relatively important to get the idea across to the teams to exceed this budget cap again”.

Former pilot Mercedes until last year, Valtteri Bottas was even more offensive. “The rules are the rules, if you don’t follow them it’s a penalty. I hope it's a strict and painful penalty, because it shouldn't happen. This must hurt them, because even if we won the Manufacturers' ranking in 2021, we lost the Drivers' ranking, and when we know that a few million can make a big difference..." The ball is in the Austrian court.