Formula One’s governing body, the FIA, has confirmed Red Bull has breached the sport’s cost cap in 2021 but has yet to decide on the team’s penalty.
After delaying the announcement last week, the FIA confirmed on Monday that Red Bull had breached a “breach of procedure” and a “small overspending” in 2021, meaning the figure was up to 5% over with a market capitalization of $145 million last year.
The news follows weeks of speculation about whether Red Bull will comply with last year’s budget cap, including team principal Christian Horner’s denial that the accounts the team sent in March were over the limit. term.
The regulations outline two types of violations: “minor” and “serious,” and they come with slightly different penalties. Overspending below five percent ($7.25 million for 2021) is a “minor” violation, while spending in excess of five percent is a “material” violation.
Penalties for each are listed in the financial regulations and include public reprimands, point deductions (for both builders and drivers), exclusion or suspension from championship stages. , limiting the possibility of future aerodynamic testing and reducing the cost cap for the following year.
However, the exclusion or suspension of the championship is only for one serious violation, meaning that Red Bull and its drivers could not be disqualified from last year’s championship for overspending.
Aston Martin was also found to have breached a “violation procedure” of financial regulations, potentially leading to a similar financial penalty as Williams received for filing his account after the FIA deadline on March.
The FIA confirms seven other F1 teams are all compliant with financial regulations by 2021.
“The review of the submitted statement of material is an intensive and thorough process and all competitors have been extremely supportive in providing the necessary information to assess their financial position during the first year. financial regulations first,” an FIA statement said.
“The FIA’s cost cap regulator noted that all competitors acted in good faith and cooperation throughout the process.
“The FIA also notes that for the first year of financial regulation, the FIA’s cost-limiting regulator intervention is limited to reviewing submissions by competitors and No full formal investigation has been launched.
“The FIA’s cost cap regulator is currently determining the appropriate action to be taken under the financial regulations for Aston Martin and Red Bull and further information will be communicated as regulation.”
