Ferrari Team Principal Frederic Vasseur revealed that the Scuderia took a budget cap hit when it was forced by the FIA to change the skid block on its Formula 1 challenger.
Ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, the FIA issued a technical directive prompting several teams to alter the skid blocks on their F1 challengers.
Teams were using satellite skid blocks to protect the plank on the underside of the car, giving them the ability to run a lower ride height for better aerodynamic performance.
However, despite initially being deemed legal by the FIA, the technical directive outlawing the satellite skid blocks came after Red Bull complained teams exploited the rules.
Ferrari was one of the teams that had to make a change and while ultimately it didn’t have an impact on the team’s performance in Las Vegas, Vaster revealed it caused financial constraints.
“It’s true that the TD came very late because we received the TD last Friday, one week before the quali,” Vasseur told select media including Motorsport Week post-race in Las Vegas.
“But it is like it is. It’s not an excuse for [performance], it’s two separate things.”
Asked to clarify how Ferrari was impacted by the technical directive, Vasseur said: “In terms of budget? Yes, a lot, because we had to redo all the skids.”
With Ferrari ultimately finishing just 14 points shy of McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship, the money diverted to replacing its skids could have detracted from chasing those vital performance gains necessary in a title race.
Ferrari questions FIA approach to skid block ruling
After Vasseur confirmed in Las Vegas in the Teams’ press conference that Ferrari was one of the teams forced into making changes, he was critical of the approach taken by the FIA.
“Yes, we had to make the change,” Vasseur revealed in November.
“But we had also the confirmation before this that the plank was legal, that from the FIA.”
Despite his curiosity regarding the technical directive’s timing, Vasseur wanted to focus on the matter at hand in Nevada: Ferrari’s il-fated pursuit of McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship.
“I think it was the right attitude for us not to fight because I want to stay focused on the championship and not on this kind of discussion,” he said.
“But the approach was strange,” Vasseur concluded.
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