Oracle Red Bull Racing have denied any wrongdoing after the FIA’s cost cap investigations concluded with a ‘Minor Financial Overspend’ during the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship campaign.
Red Bull were also deemed to have committed a ‘Procedural Breach’ to the regulations, as did the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team, and both teams are awaiting news over their potential punishments, which could be either financial or a possible deduction in championship points.
A ‘Minor’ Breach means they exceeded the budget cap by less than five per cent, meaning the more harsher penalties, such as exclusion from the championship, will not be enforced.
Red Bull have released a statement admitting ‘surprise’ at the result, and they are currently looking into their options as they believe their submissions were below the level of the cost cap, which for the 2021 season was $145 million.
“We note the findings by the FIA of ‘Minor Overspend Breaches of the Financial Regulations’ with surprise and disappointment,” read the statement from Red Bull.
“Our 2021 submission was below the Cost Cap limit, so we need to carefully review the FIA’s findings as our belief remains that the relevant costs are under the 2021 Cost Cap amount.
“Despite the conjecture and positioning of others, there is of course a process under the regulations with the FIA which we will respectfully follow while we consider all the options available to us.”
The most likely outcome is a financial hit to the team, particularly as it is the first year of the budget cap regulations, and the FIA will not want to see any more negativity towards the way it controls Formula 1.
The Williams Racing team suffered a $25,000 fine earlier in 2022 after a ‘Procedural Breach’ of their own after they failed to submit their documentation in time.