Rules guardian of Formula 1 in the Red Bull dilemma
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Max Verstappen’s Red Bull team broke Formula 1 financial rules. The question of what punishment is appropriate for this leads the sports authorities into tricky territory. The benefit that Verstappen was able to draw from it is quite undisputed among experts.
Dhe backroom thriller about the alleged financial fraud of Max Verstappen’s Red Bull team puts the rulers of Formula 1 in serious trouble. The question of sanctions for the violation of the budget limit by the world champion racing team splits the racing series and becomes an endurance test for the sports authorities.
“If there has been a breach of the rules, there must be a significant penalty,” Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto had just said on the sidelines of the Grand Prix in Japan. But observers doubt that the world association Fia will get through to it. After months of auditing, the Fia announced on Monday evening that Red Bull was the only one of the ten teams to have exceeded the spending limit last year. The cost limit is intended to ensure more equal opportunities. The violation is a “minor” sum, according to the umbrella organization. But that’s exactly what the scene is arguing about. Minor, i.e. less than five percent of the approximately 150 million euros allowed. That would still be up to 7.25 million.
Ferrari team boss Binotto calculated that additional investments of one to two million dollars can make a car faster by up to 0.2 seconds per lap. That is a decisive advantage, for example in the fight for pole position. Experts pointed out that smaller teams like Alfa Romeo don’t spend much more than $2.5 million per season to develop their racing cars.
The catalog of possible penalties is far-reaching
The fact that the Fia has not yet announced a penalty and left open in its message what the specific amount of Red Bull’s offense is, only accelerated speculation. Three-year-old statements by Formula 1 sports director Ross Brawn quickly reappeared, who asserted at the time: “This set of rules has bite. If you fraudulently break the financial rules, you will lose your world title.”
The catalog of possible penalties is far-reaching. Everything is possible, from a mere warning to the deduction of championship points in the driver or team rankings, a ban or a restriction on development tests to a lowering of the spending limit for the team. The Fia, however, already pointed out in its message that only a serious violation would automatically lead to the deduction of championship points.
The wounds of the numerous Hamilton fans reopened
This can be taken as an indication that Verstappen does not have to worry too much about his first title from the previous year. It was already highly controversial. Race director Michael Masi bent the rules at the finale in Abu Dhabi, enabling Verstappen to overtake Lewis Hamilton on the last lap. “It has become a habit for Formula 1 to shoot themselves in the foot, but this time they used a rocket launcher. This is a new low. He showed that the sport is over-regulated, that even the world association Fia no longer understands the rule book,” the English newspaper “The Sun” judged at the time.
The results of the Fia financial audit now tore open the wounds of the numerous Hamilton fans. Verstappen not only benefited from the mistake of Masi, who was later dismissed for this reason, but also from an illegally developed car – as many wrote in tweets dripping with anger on the Internet. We are talking about financial doping, which should be punished just as severely as doping in other sports. Red Bull, meanwhile, was “surprised” and “disappointed” by the allegations. The team is still convinced that it has complied with the spending limit and wants to examine legal means. Should Red Bull not admit a mistake after all, the case will go before the Fia’s specially set up finance court. An appeal against a judgment can then be lodged with the International Court of Appeal of the Fia.
The delicate case is likely to drag on for even longer and burden the last few weeks of the season, which has already been decided with Verstappen’s second title. The sticking point for the rule-keepers: If they don’t judge hard enough, it reduces the deterrent effect of the budget limit. If they take drastic action, there could suddenly be another champion about a year after the Abu Dhabi scandal.