Red Bull boss Christian Horner disappointed in colleagues: ‘These are fictional accusations’ | formula 1

It was a tough press conference at the Circuit of the Americas. Late on Saturday morning, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner and his McLaren colleague Zak Brown sat side by side without looking at each other too often. Answers were expected from Horner in particular. About the budget cap, of course. The new rule gives Formula 1 teams a cap on the expenses they can make to make the sport more exciting.

It has now been known and extensively discussed: Red Bull has exceeded the maximum budget of $145 million in 2021. It was announced by the FIA ​​on Monday 10 October, the day after Max Verstappen had secured his second world title in Japan. Since then, there has been plenty of speculation about the punishment that the Dutchman’s team should receive. Brown even sent a letter to the FIA ​​about itin which he made it clear that cheating should be severely punished.

“It’s very disappointing to be accused of cheating or fraudulently by a colleague,” Horner said as Brown sat next to him. “All the accusations we have received publicly harm our brand, our partners and our team. This is not good, they are fictitious accusations, which you cannot make without having facts. This has to stop.”

Brown responded that his letter was not specifically aimed at Red Bull. In his own words, he only wanted to indicate that he believes that if the budget cap has been exceeded by a team, there should be harsh punishments.

In any case, everyone longs for clarity about that punishment, Horner as well. “We are in a process with the FIA,” he explained. “We hope to finish it this weekend. From that moment on, all the facts will be on the table. Then we can talk openly about why we think we’ve done everything right. It’s a new process, a rulebook that is 52 pages long. It has been the first year of very difficult financial rules.”

Yet. All that is now known is that those rules have not been followed by Red Bull. And that has ensured for weeks that several teams have felt that Verstappen’s team has given itself an advantage in the battle for the 2021 world title. An advantage that also extends to the current season and the years to follow.

“What you have to look at are the relevant costs,” Horner said. “Our view is that our relevant costs were within the budget cap. We have in no way benefited from the way we handled the budget cap. It was clear from our side how to interpret the 52 pages of this rule. We have not given ourselves any advantage for the 2021 championship, not for the current season and will have no financial advantage until 2026.”

Whether Horner’s words are also endorsed by the FIA, where exactly the budget is exceeded and what penalty Red Bull will receive, it is all still unknown. ,,We can’t wait until we have a solution”, emphasized Horner again. We have been in this process for ten days now and I hope it will be completed this weekend. It’s best for everyone if this is over as soon as possible and we can all learn a lot about how this went. What I can promise is that once it’s done, I’ll be completely transparent about our side of the story.”