Boats and bicycles scrutinised in new cost cap worry for Mercedes and Red Bull
Merced𒅌es, Red Bull⛦, Ferrari and Aston Martin are the four teams currently being investigated by the FIA, according to .
The production๊ of boats, bicycles and road cars by those teams have created the possibility that they could use a loopholꦗe in the cost cap rules.
The FIA are investigating whether the four teams are deploying 💙their staff to work on non-F1 projects, so they do not count towards the budget cap, but stillꦫ benefiting from their learnings in the world of Formula 1.
For e🌌xample, Mercedes and Red Bull arꦦe both involved in competing in the America’s Cup, the world’s biggest sailing competition.
James Allison🐽, Mercedes’ technical director, previ🍸ously worked on the sailing project.
Ferrari, meanwhile, won the 24 Hours of Le Man꧟s.
None 𒈔of the staff i🧸nvolved in those projects count within the F1 cost cap.
The FIA are now digging deeper to understand if all rules have been fo๊llowed.
Red Bull, the constructors’ champions, notoriously b⭕roke the 2021 budget cap🐟 which has cost them a $7m fine plus a 10 percent reduction in wind tunnel time this season.
James was a sports journalist at Sky Sports for a decade covering everything from American sport🌠s, to football, to F1.
