Red Bull and Aston Martin were found to have breached Formula 1’s Cost Cap regulations last season, with the sport’s governing body saying Monday it was guilty of “minor” overspending.
Due to be made public last week but delayed until today, the FIA announced the verdict of its investigation into whether certain F1 teams had violated the spending regulations in 2021 when Red Bull driver Max Verstappen won his first title on the last lap of the last race. Verstappen clinched his second straight F1 title at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday.
The governing body said Red Bull was “considered to be in procedural and minor overspend breaches of the financial regulations” in 2021, but that any sanctions would be announced at a later date. Going over the budget cap by less than 5% is considered a minor breach.
Aston Martin was also considered to be in breach of the F1 Cost Cap regulations.
“The FIA Cost Cap Administration is currently determining the appropriate course of action to be taken under the Financial Regulations with respect to Aston Martin and Red Bull and further information will be communicated in compliance with the Regulations,” the body said in a statement.
F1 introduced a budget cap of $145 million last year with the aim of creating a more level playing field in the sport and reducing the spending might of powerhouses like Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull.
It was scaled down to $140 million for 2022 and drops to $135 million for 2023, excluding driver salaries and engine costs. (Associated Press)
FIA Statement:
The FIA confirms that its Cost Cap Administration has now completed the review of the Reporting Documentation submitted by each Competitor that participated in the 2021 FIA Formula One World Championship in respect of the 2021 Reporting Period ending on 31 December 2021.
The FIA Cost Cap Administration has issued certificates of compliance to seven of the ten Competitors:
- Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One Team is considered to be in Procedural Breach of the Financial Regulations;
- Oracle Red Bull Racing is considered to be in Procedural and Minor Overspend Breaches of the Financial Regulations; and
- Williams Racing has complied with the Financial Regulations in respect of the 2021 Reporting Period with the exception of a previous Procedural Breach (in regard to which the Cost Cap Administration entered into an ABA with Williams in May 2022. This Procedural Breach was then remediated by Williams in a timely, cooperative and transparent manner).
The review of the Reporting Documentation submitted has been an intensive and thorough process, and all Competitors gave their full support in providing the required information to assess their financial situation during this first year of the Financial Regulations.
The FIA Cost Cap Administration notes that all Competitors acted at all times in a spirit of good faith and cooperation throughout the process.
The FIA would also note that with respect to this first year of the application of the Financial Regulations the intervention of the FIA Cost Cap Administration has been limited to reviewing the submissions made by the Competitors and that no full formal investigations were launched.
The FIA Cost Cap Administration is currently determining the appropriate course of action to be taken under the Financial Regulations with respect to Aston Martin and Red Bull and further information will be communicated in compliance with the Regulations.
Notes on the FIA F1 Cost Cap
Financial Regulations were introduced in the FIA Formula One World Championship from the 2021 season following unanimous approval of the Competitors. The intention of the Financial Regulations is to limit spending in the Championship to ensure the long-term viability of the Championship and encourage convergence in performance between Competitors, thus creating more exciting racing.
The regulations are highly complex, reflecting the complexity of the sport as a whole. The process whereby the submissions of the Competitors are then audited by the FIA Cost Cap Administration requires a significant amount of work, which has been carried out in the time anticipated by the FIA. This is analogous to the timeframe seen in other major sporting competitions.
The Cost Cap Administration is responsible for administering, monitoring compliance with the Financial Regulations, investigating instances of suspected non-compliance through the auditing process or by launching full investigations if it considers this warranted, and taking appropriate enforcement action in respect of any alleged breaches.
The Cost Cap Administration has several options when dealing with an alleged breach of the Financial Regulations. It can enter, when deemed appropriate, into a settlement referred to as an Accepted Breach Agreement (ABA) with the Competitor concerned in case of Procedural Breach or Minor Overspend Breach, or, if no agreement can be reached or the Cost Cap Administration considers it more appropriate, it can refer the case to the Cost Cap Adjudication Panel. In the event of an alleged Major Overspend Breach the Cost Cap Administration must refer the case to the Cost Cap Adjudication Panel.
The Cost Cap Adjudication Panel comprises a panel of between six and twelve judges elected by the FIA General Assembly in accordance with the FIA Statutes from among the candidates proposed by either the FIA Sport Member Associations entitled to vote or a group of not less than five F1 Teams.
Procedural Breaches can result in Financial Penalties and/or Minor Sporting Penalties (in case of aggravating factors) as detailed in the Financial Regulation. Minor Overspend breach (<5% Cost Cap) can result in Financial Penalties and/or Minor Sporting Penalties. Only a Material Overspend breach (>5% Cost Cap) if confirmed before the Cost Cap Adjudication Panel will result in a mandatory Constructors’ Championship points deductions and can result in additional Financial Penalties and/or Material Sporting Penalties.