F1 News: Mercedes Chief Damns Red Bull In Questions On Cost Cap Breach

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has shared his thoughts on the penalty that Red Bull received for exceeding the cost cap in 2021. The team was fined $7 million and had their wind tunnel time reduced by 10% for the 2023 season. This decision caused a stir in the racing community, with Red Bull team principal Christian Horner calling the penalties “draconian,” while others believed the punishment was not severe enough.

During an interview with SwiatWyscigow.pl, Wolff was asked about his thoughts on the cost cap breach and the resulting penalty. He emphasized the significant reputational damage that Red Bull has suffered as a result of the incident.

”I think the biggest penalty was not the 10% wind tunnel time [reduction] or the 7 million dollars. I think the biggest penalty was the reputational hit that the team got and in a way it’s unfair for the Red Bull mother brand which is fantastic in their field.

Interestingly, Wolff feels the opposite to Christian Horner about teams coming close to the cost cap. He said:

“But the racing team has just been having such a reputational hit and also the people. So I think nobody is kind of dare bringing it close to that anymore.”

In comparison, Red Bull believes up to 6 teams will have breached the cap in 2022. On talking about the 2021 cost cap, Horner said:

“I think what we have set is a precedent. And it sets a precedent for 2022. And a danger for 2022 is that there could be six teams in breach of the cap. Energy prices have been exponential, but thankfully we’ve been protected from that.

“But there is that chance that several teams, many of which have stated it during F1 commission meetings, will break the cap this year.”

Helmut Marko added:

“I think the current status is that six teams are over it.

“Inflation is something that was not calculable to that extent, especially when it comes to energy costs.”