Red Bull has revealed just how much the damage to Max Verstappen’s RB16B will cost them, following his crash with Lewis Hamilton at the British Grand Prix.
Verstappen suffered a heavy 51G impact with the tyre wall at the Copse corner, which is taken at 180mph, following contact with Hamilton on the opening lap of the race.
Verstappen’s car suffered a huge amount of damage, with the chassis unlikely to be salvaged, whilst the rear of the car was almost completely destroyed.
Honda have yet to confirm whether the Dutchman’s power unit can be used again, though it too sustained damage with parts unlikely to be used again this season, which could have further ramifications later in the year.
However the true damage, given Verstappen escaped unharmed, was to Red Bull’s bank balance, with team principal Christian Horner revealing just how much it has cost them.
“The significant factor is the cost-cap element of this,” Horner wrote in his Red Bull column. “That crash has cost us approximately $1.8 million and an accident like that has massive ramifications in a budget cap era.”
Horner also confirmed that Red Bull is still investigating whether it wishes to appeal the stewards decision to penalise Hamilton with a ten-second time penalty, which the Briton insists is “light” given the severity of the crash.
“It is no secret that we felt at the time, and still feel, that Hamilton was given a light penalty for this type of incident,” he added. “Given the severity of the incident and the lenient penalty, we are reviewing all data and have the right to request a review.
“We are therefore still looking at the evidence and considering all of our sporting options.”
SR 4.11.3
If any of the seven penalties above are imposed they shall not be subject to appeal.
Sour grapes.
You can like or dislike Lewis Hamilton, condemn his role in this incident to a greater or lesser degree, but is it possible to not see Christian Horner, who used to seem like he had his feet firmly on the ground, as having become a heck of a whiner lately?
Well said, Horner. Keep pushing for justice, dirty driving must not be allowed to prevail.