Sarah O'Dwyer: Horner comes out swinging as Red Bull found to have 'overspent' in 2021

RED Bull Racing has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons in recent weeks — so much so that you could be forgiven for forgetting that their number one driver, Max Verstappen, has already won the 2022 world title with races to spare.

Verstappen didn’t even know he had won the world title after the recent Japanese Grand Prix. Confusion reigned after significant rainfall meant a full race didn’t take place. In fact, only 28 laps of the race were completed.

Rules regarding the rewarding of points to drivers and teams in Formula 1 differ in certain scenarios, so much so that even the best driver in the world wasn’t sure if he had claimed enough points in that incident-filled race to claim the overall title for 2022.

However, full points were awarded and Max Verstappen was named champion.

“When I crossed the line I didn’t believe that we would have won the title right there because I also didn’t know if we’re going to get full points or not,” he said.

Red Bull Racing went into that race in early October under the cloud of being accused of breaking financial rules. Remarkably, that cloud still lingers on.

Prior to the Japanese Grand Prix, the FIA – which is Formula 1’s governing body – delayed its findings into whether any teams had broken the financial rules for 2021. Since that race, it was revealed that Red Bull Racing failed to comply with the £114million price cap set last season.

It was found that they had overspent by less than 5%, in what’s dubbed a “minor” breach of regulations. It’s also understood that they were significantly under the 5% mark, but no figures have been confirmed. Despite that, the findings have left many questioning the legitimacy of last year’s world title – the legitimacy of which had already been questioned for an entirely different reason. It also took the gloss off of Verstappen’s victory this time around.

Red Bull said in a statement: “We note the findings by the FIA of ‘minor overspend breaches of the financial regulations’ with surprise and disappointment.

“Our 2021 submission was below the cost cap limit, so we need to carefully review the FIA’s findings as our belief remains that the relevant costs are under the 2021 cost cap amount.”

Red Bull can now challenge the decision of the FIA, enter into an Accepted Breach Agreement, or a final option would be the FIA’s International Court of Appeal.The first option would see an independent panel hear the case, but could leave the team open to harsher punishments, the second would see the loss of the right to appeal, and a penalty would be handed down, but it would ensure Verstappen’s maiden title stands.

The third option could also see the team risk a harsher punishment.

This weekend, Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner said he was “appalled” and “shocked” at allegations of cheating by rival team McLaren boss Zak Brown who had written to FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem and said a financial breach “constitutes cheating”.

Horner went as far as to say the allegations were causing children of Red Bull Racing team members to be bullied at school.

In what was a fiery press conference supposed to preview Sunday’s United States Grand Prix, where the pair were sat next to each other, Horner said: “For a fellow competitor to accuse you of cheating, and to accuse you of fraudulent activity is shocking.

He continued: “In an age where mental health is prevalent, we are seeing significant issues within our workforce.

“Kids are being bullied in playgrounds because they are children of Red Bull employees. That is not right and it has come about because of fictious allegations from other teams without any fact or substance.”

However, the saga looks set to continue for some time yet, as Red Bull’s punishment for breaking the rules has been delayed following the death of the team’s co-owner Dietrich Mateschitz. His death was announced before the qualifying round on Saturday.

“Following the passing of Mr Mateschitz, all conversations with the FIA around Cost Cap and next steps are on hold until further notice,” a statement from Red Bull said.

“The deadline for agreement has been extended and we expect talks to pick back up middle of the week,” it added.