The FIA has stated that it is unable to confirm whether Red Bull successfully used a ride height bib device to gain a competitive advantage during the 2024 Formula 1 season.
Following the revelation Red Bull may have the ability to alter the ride height of the RB20 in Parc Ferme, the sport’s governing body has sought to clarify if the team contravened the regulations.
If the reigning champions had manually altered the ride height before scrutineering checks, the team could have run the car more competitively, potentially improving its performance.
Technical delegates from the FIA could be seen in the team’s garage during Friday’s practice session, with rivals closely inspecting the car leading the Drivers’ Championship.
Speaking to Sky Sports at the United States Grand Prix, FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis said it cannot categorically prove no advantage was gained during the season.
He also confirmed changes had been made moving forward to negate any potential future occurrences, voiding the team’s potential advantage for the rest of 2024.
“I think we’ve done all that’s needed to stop there being any accusations,” Tombazis said.
“I think it’s certainly not a story from now on. I think we’ve done all that’s needed to stop there being any accusations.
“Of course, it is a tight championship and people get rather excited about each other’s cars and so we can’t definitively close the previous races or any insinuations there may be between teams in a very competitive environment.
“But in the present situation, we believe it’s a non-story,” he confirmed.
Elaborating, Tombazis said any advantage gained would be minor, making any Parc Ferme checks near impossible to quantify, confirming the lack of historical precedence adds to the problem.
“We are talking really something like a couple of millimetres or something like that, potentially,” he said. “We’re really talking about very small numbers. I don’t think it’s something that we could go and check.
“But also, we don’t have any indication or proof or anything like that about something untoward having happened before.”
Red Bull defiant
Red Bull Racing CEO and Team Principal Christian Horner revealed his relief on Friday at the outcome of the FIA investigation, opting to explain the technical detail behind the controversy,
He also added the team has come under increased scrutiny as a result of its dominant performance since the introduction of the ground-effect cars in 2022.
“It was a conversation that we actually had with the FIA in Singapore and they’ve looked at and they’re more than happy with it. They’re totally happy with it,” he said.
“So just to explain to the public, there’s about 600 items on the car that are fully adjustable. Everybody can adjust these items.
“What you can’t do is adjust them during parc ferme and that is what hasn’t happened. It would be easier to adjust a floor stay or a roll bar or a pushrod length than strip out the pedals.
“We have cameras watching the cars. We have scrutineers and witnesses watching the cars. Our car has come under more scrutiny in the last three years than any other car in the pit lane. So we’re totally comfortable,” Horner concluded.
Rivals divided on next steps
McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown pushed hard for a thorough investigation into the issue, concerned Red Bull gained more of an advantage than originally believed.
By contrast, Ferrari Team Principal Frederic Vasseur threw his support behind the FIA, trusting the outcome of its investigation, but did state he expects action if regulations have been breached.
“We have to trust the FIA on this one. I don’t want to make any comment on rumours and so on because I don’t know what’s happened, I’m not into the team for sure and I don’t know if they used it or not,” Vasseur told Sky.
“But if they used it [in parc ferme] it’s clearly cheating, it’s not a grey area or whatever. We had tons of grey areas from the beginning of the season but this, if it’s the case, it wouldn’t be a grey area at all, but we have to trust the FIA and let’s see.”
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