Helmut Marko assures that the penalty will strongly impact his team
The Austrian believes that the penalty imposed by the FIA for exceeding the budget cap will heavily penalize them for next year.
The sanction is causing a stir. And, depending on the teams, the speeches are not the same. Where unaffected teams perceive the penalty as too lenient, for the main parties involved, Red Bull, it is deemed too severe. Christian Horner, the team’s boss, ensures that it represents a loss of up to half a second per lap.
Helmut Marko, Red Bull’s advisor, states that this penalty represents a real disadvantage compared to other teams. « The sanction is severe. But it is about the limit at which we think we can be competitive in the years to come, despite the time restrictions in the wind tunnel », indicates the Austrian to Sky Sports.
« But it’s a huge competitive disadvantage. Our wind tunnel was one of the first to be built, and in terms of execution and sensitivity to heat, we still need more time to find the right temperature because it is not state-of-the-art technology. »
We cannot afford to miss our chance. What we put in the wind tunnel must work. We cannot afford to make mistakes.
As a reminder, Red Bull has been fined $7 million and will have a 10% reduction in wind tunnel time, as well as less usage of its technologies for aerodynamic development.