Ferrari at war with rivals over engines
Seven teams protest at FIA’S private settlement Suspicion that 2019’s power unit was illegal
In one of the most dramatic collective actions ever seen in Formula One, seven teams have threatened court action after the sport’s world governing body reached a private settlement with Ferrari over a potentially illegal power unit.
Just over a week before the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, the F1 paddock is in open conflict, with the majority of teams rounding furiously on the FIA for its perceived deference towards
Ferrari and its lack of transparency. The Red Bull hierarchy, in particular, are believed to be incandescent.
There is a difference of £10million in prize money between second and third places in the constructors’ championship and Red Bull, having been beaten by Ferrari to last year’s runner-up spot by 87 points, have received no assurances that their rivals’ engine fell within the rules.
After a lengthy investigation into the legality of Ferrari’s power unit last year, triggered by several teams’ suspicions over the Italians’ superior straight-line speed, the FIA confirmed last week that the inquiry had been resolved, but that the terms of the deal would remain confidential.
The opacity of this statement, coupled with the fact that it was rushed out in the final minutes of pre-season testing, enraged all seven teams not powered by Ferrari
engines, who issued a collective response to express their anger and their determination to “pursue full and proper disclosure, to ensure that our sport treats all competitors fairly and equally”.
The teams, led by Ferrari’s chief championship rivals, also promised to “reserve our rights to seek legal redress before the competent courts”. Ferrari declined to respond, while the FIA provided no comment on yesterday’s unusual move, despite multiple requests.
“An international sporting regulator has the responsibility to act with the highest standards of governance, integrity and transparency,” the teams’ letter read. “After months of investigations that were undertaken by the FIA only following queries raised by other teams, we strongly object to the FIA reaching a confidential settlement with Ferrari to conclude this matter.”
Mercedes, Red Bull, Mclaren,
Renault, Racing Point, Alphatauri and Williams all signed the document, with Alfa Romeo and Haas, both Ferrari engine customers, the only exceptions. The row started last year, when several teams began voicing discontent about the degree of Ferrari’s apparent speed advantage on the straights.
The FIA was forced to publish a rules clarification at the United States GP in Austin in reply to a series of technical questions from Red Bull. These focused on whether it was legal to adapt the cars’ mandatory fuel-flow meter in ways that allowed them to bypass the regulation limit of 100kg per hour.
After the FIA confirmed that any such move would be against the rules, a run of six successive Ferrari pole positions was broken by Mercedes in Texas. The team also failed to secure pole in the season’s final two races, in Brazil and Abu Dhabi. Mattia Binotto, the Scuderia’s team principal, argued that the discrepancy arose from adding greater downforce – and therefore drag – to the set-up.
Their competitors are furious that an issue of such gravity has since been treated in the most secretive way. The vague nature of the FIA’S statement has raised doubts among the teams about whether Ferrari’s car was legal throughout the 2019 campaign.
At other times in the past two years, they have stretched the sport’s laws to breaking point and even beyond. In Monaco in 2018, the FIA compelled Ferrari to install an extra piece of hardware in their cars to ensure they were not gaining an unfair power boost. Just three months ago in Abu Dhabi, they were fined £40,000 for giving an inaccurate fuel declaration for driver Charles Leclerc.
The FIA has denied accusations of favouritism towards Ferrari.