This year’s champion Formula 1Red Bull will pay a $7 million fine for exceeding the 2021 cost cap and cut its wind tunnel testing time by 10% over the next 12 months, the FIA ​​announced on Friday (October 28).

The International Automobile Federation (FIA) added in a statement ahead of this weekend’s Mexican Grand Prix that Red Bull’s decision is final and not subject to appeal.

On the other hand, the FIA ​​did not retroactively deduct points from Red Bull for this “minor” violation of the 1.6% cap. Thus, the team retains the drivers’ world title won by the Dutchman Max Verstappen.

Red Bull is the only team to exceed the $145 million budget limit set for the first time in F1 for the 2021 season.

The FIA ​​praised Red Bull’s “cooperation” in resolving the case, which was solved on 10 October, and believes that Red Bull did not intend to act “dishonestly or in bad faith”.

What worked as a mitigation, according to the FIA, was the fact that this was the first year of the cost cap, a “very complex set of rules” that ten of the world’s elite teams had to comply with.

Now Red Bull has thirty days to pay the fine.

What does this punishment entail?

At a sporting level, the team of two-time 2021 and 2022 world champion Verstappen has escaped the worst FIA sanctions ever (point deductions, demotions, retroactive bans).

However, he should expect twelve months of reduced wind tunnel testing time, which is vital when developing future vehicles.

It is worth noting that in any case, this time is already inversely proportional to the ranking of teams in the World Cup. And since Red Bull became champion in 2022, they are already enjoying the shortest wind tunnel time on the Formula 1 starting grid.

With information from APE-MPE