Red Bull could face ‘several penalties’ for breaking F1 rules

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Red Bull could face “several penalties” for breaching F1’s strict budget cap, according to journalist Erik van Harren. The de Telegraaf reporter claimed the FIA were considering a range of punishments after a series of meetings with team boss Christian Horner.

It is understood Horner hopes to meet FIA President Mohammed ben Sulayem again today to discuss the issue. The pair were spotted in conversation ahead of FP2 yesterday evening with the pair holding talks for around half an hour.

Horner had been desperate to chat to Ben Sulayem in Austin after holding talks with F1 boss Stefano Domenicali on Thursday. Red Bull did have a press conference planned for Friday morning to declare their side in the budget cap fiasco.

However, this was shelved after it emerged Horner was yet to speak to the FIA president. The FIA sent Red Bull an “Accepted Breach Agreement”earlier in the week in a bid to close the matter.

But, this would mean Red Bull would be forced to accept any punishments the FIA stipulate, Rumours suggest the team were offered a 25 per cent reduction in wind tunnel time as part of the deal.

However, it is unlikely Red Bull would agree to this as it would have a major impact on the development of next season’s car. It is believed Red Bull have known about the possible penalty for around a week but disagree with it.

There are claims Horner made a counter-suggestion to the FIA as to what their penalty could be. The team were found guilty of breaching the budget cap but expect a minor penalty after they broke the cap by less than five per cent.

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It means a financial penalty is the most likely outcome but other teams are pushing for tougher penalties. McLaren boss Zak Brown called for Red Bull to lose their wind tunnel time and some development.

Ted Kravitz has also claimed rival bosses are looking to throw Red Bull out of this season’s constructors’ standings and dock their prize money. Other punishments include pushing Red Bull to the back of the pit lane order next season to set an example to other squads.

Former Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas has been among the leading drivers to call for a penalty that “really hurts” the team. Lewis Hamilton also stressed any punishment needed to be more than a “slap on the wrist” to maintain the integrity of the cost cap.

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