Rumor: Wolff FIA mole likely leaked Red Bull F1 breach (3rd Update)
Speaking at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Ben Sulayem dismissed any notion that she had any preference for Mercedes (but of course he would say that) and responded to speculation that she could soon step down from her role – with a permanent replacement being pit in place.
“Her position is interim secretary general, and the interim, what does interim mean?” he explained.
“Shaila-Ann has been supportive a lot to me. You see her intelligence when it comes to setting big decisions for me.
“I’ll be very honest with you, and I’ll defend my opinion, but when it comes to Shaila-Ann, there were accusations that she is mainly a supporter of Mercedes.
“But actually, when the [cost cap] penalties were there with both teams, she said that’s a bit harsh from me.
“I looked and said: ‘My god, there is someone who is accusing her of being with Mercedes, and she’s saying to me that it’s harsh on Red Bull.’”
“On the leak, we were in Austria, we were having the F1 Commission meeting, and while we were talking about it, it was already in the news,” he said.
“It’s frustrating sometimes, because before you’ve finished your meeting, something has got out.” [Editor’s Note: Was Shaila-Ann texting it to Toto Wolff during the meeting?]
October 4, 2022
Dr. Helmut Marko says Toto Wolff needs to move on from Abu Dhabi where the Mercedes team’s strategy error under the poor leadership of Wolff (and not Michael Masi) was mostly to blame for Lewis Hamilton losing the Abu Dhabi race and the title as we laid out in this related article.
“It’s a massive damage to reputation,” motorsport-total.com quote the 79-year-old as having told Austrian broadcaster ORF.
“Abu Dhabi is long gone. It’s a bit strange that he still hasn’t got over it.”
The senior of the two Austrians also wants to know where Wolff has been getting his information from, given the FIA reports will not be out before Wednesday.
“It is more than surprising how Toto Wolff came up with these numbers,” he said. “He speaks of a massive overrun. There must be a leak somewhere at the FIA.
“This now goes beyond the usual political denigration. These are concrete and serious allegations.
“In our opinion, we are under it (the cap). If you interpret that to our disadvantage, we would be marginally over it.”
“What I said absolutely stands,” he said. “Let’s consider all of our options.
“It is totally unacceptable to make a totally unfounded allegation, and on the basis of what knowledge? What is the source of this information?
“This is a confidential submission between the teams and the FIA. I have no idea of the compliance of any of our rivals.
“Where does that information come from?”
Ex-Red Bull driver Mark Webber suggested perhaps those scars have not healed, evidenced by this latest bout of verbal conflict.
Put to him during Channel 4’s coverage that this is Horner versus Wolff all over again, Webber replied: “Well, is it Abu Dhabi sort of popping back up again?
“We know what was at stake last year, don’t we? And the fine margins [by which] that championship was won and lost.
“So yes, opposition teams are getting on their horse and having a red-hot crack that there might be something here. The FIA, it’s up to them now to back up Christian’s comments because he says they are barking up the wrong tree.”
Webber stressed it is “pure speculation” at the moment but if a team has indeed abused the cap, he explained that would bring a competitive advantage which not only impacts last season but also 2022 and maybe 2023 as well.
“It’s pure speculation at the moment,” Webber affirmed. “There have been some leaks around the finances of how certain teams control their budget cap last year in ’21, which was the first season, $145 million they had to stick to, which is obviously a canter for most of these teams.
“Obviously it’s a very tight budget, so everyone’s trying to stick to that number. Obviously there’s a competitive advantage if you go over and that’s what seems to be in question here with two teams, particularly Red Bull.
“Mr Horner isn’t happy, it’s a big, big topic because it has an influence on last year, this year and potentially ’23 because cars are designed where you stop where that money was spent.”
October 4, 2022
Lewis Hamilton fans and Toto Wolff had better get their crying towels out again. If they were hoping that the Red Bull Budget breach would result in Max Verstappen being stripped of his 2021 F1 driving title, they are likely about to be disappointed.
Red Bull looks set to escape a “draconian” penalty amid the budget cap scandal.
Christian Horner has maintained his team filed their audited report with their costs actually LOWER than the cap.
On Sunday night after the Singapore race, Horner repeated his claim and said: “I’m absolutely confident in our submission.
“It’s been through a process. It went in in March, in terms of being signed off fully by our auditors, and we believe that we are comfortably within the cap.”
Sources believe a $7.5 million fine for both Red Bull and Aston Martin is on the cards, as are wind tunnel usage restrictions.
Another source thinks a 50 constructors’ point deduction is possible, but that would not affect the outcome of either the 2021 or 2022 title races.
“Christian Horner said that what Red Bull gave the FIA in March was all correct and within the cost cap,” Williams boss Jost Capito told RTL.
“And I have no reason not to believe him.”
Capito added that “rumors” of a major Red Bull breach are just that, because “there is still no real evidence”.
Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto, however, insists that even if Red Bull’s breach was only a ‘minor’ $4 million, that would still be a major problem.
“Four million? That’s our entire development budget for one season,” he said.
“It’s 70 technicians and engineers that I can pay to find better solutions,” Binotto added. “You can get half a second a lap out of that.
“This competitive advantage also has an effect in the following seasons. And it’s an important issue because it’s all about credibility.”
The FIA auditors may not agree with the Red Bull auditors (it’s a negotiating process as most audits are) and the final figure could be just over the threshold following an assessment by the FIA to a sum that amounts to about $2 million if the latest rumors are to be believed. The budget cap rules say anything under 5% is considered a minor infraction (5% of 145 million = $7.25 million).
$2 million would then qualify as a ‘minor’ breach of the rules and result in the FIA coming up with a suitable punishment, which Red Bull will either accept or appeal. Given it is the first year these audits are being done, the FIA is likely to be more lenient. Repeat offenders will likely be handed stiffer penalties.
Punishment Options the FIA Has
Should Red Bull accept the punishment, they’d be awarded their compliance certificate with the stipulation they accepted a breach agreement with the FIA and a punishment likely to be a monetary fine.
However, it is now looking unlikely that it will change the outcome of last year’s championship and that Red Bull’s Max Verstappen keeps his crown.
October 3, 2022
(GMM) A former Toto Wolff insider who now works for the FIA may be the source of the leaked information about Red Bull’s alleged budget cap breach.
That is the suspicion of former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, after top Red Bull official Dr Helmut Marko said he suspected the FIA has a “mole”.
Earlier this year, Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto admitted his “concern” that former Wolff and Mercedes advisor and lawyer Shaila-Ann Rao had become the FIA’s new secretary general for sport.
“I think it’s down to the FIA to make sure that there will be no conflicts of interest at all, to behave properly and it’s down to the president to ensure that,” Binotto said.
Now, Marko suspects a “mole” leaked the budget cap data.
“First of all, it’s surprising. We have no information so far,” said the 79-year-old Austrian. “So where does this detailed information, which Toto Wolff used for his allegation, come from?
“That is the first thing to clarify.”
Marko told the Austrian broadcaster ORF that the leaked information may be connected with Wolff’s ongoing bitterness about how the 2021 championship ended.
“Abu Dhabi is long gone,” he said. “It’s a bit strange that he still hasn’t gotten over it.
“It’s more than amazing how he came up with these numbers. He talks about a massive overspend – there must be a mole somewhere at the FIA.”
Ralf Schumacher admits that the FIA, which has condemned the “significant and unsubstantiated speculation and conjecture” about the budget cap breaches, has a case to answer.
“We all know that a close confidante and former employee of Toto Wolff is now working in a very high position at the FIA,” he told Sky Deutschland.
“The FIA has to undergo an investigation into itself because this information simply must not slip out. It only harms Formula 1 and only the FIA can be to blame.
“But no matter what comes out on Wednesday, for me Toto Wolff with his harsh criticism is a bad loser who still hasn’t digested the fact that he lost a title.”
Dutch broadcaster Ziggo Sport claims that both Red Bull and Aston Martin may be fined $7.5 million for their separate alleged breaches, as well as restrictions on wind tunnel usage next year.
But Marko insists that Red Bull is in the process of clarifying the situation with the FIA.
“There is no final report to date, no specific figures,” he said.
“But there are a few points where we see the situation differently than the FIA in terms of interpretation. We sent a report to the FIA and so far, there is no answer.
“But if only two of our six points are taken into account, we are under the cap.
“Everything else that is floating around is complete nonsense.”