Red Bull team boss Christian Horner and FIA Mohammed Ben Sulayem have reportedly met in Austin to discuss Red Bull’s 2021 cost cap breach matter.
Since the news broke that Red Bull have been deemed to have a minor breach in their 2021 spending under the budget cap, no conclusion has been reached on the subject with rumours and hearsay dominating actual facts on this matter.
However a report by Sky Sports F1 revealed that the team have been offered an “accepted breach agreement” (ABA) which – should they accept – means the Milton Keynes outfit will be subject to a less severe punishment.
That would mean however, that the team will accept that they have erred with the cost cap in 2021, but should they reject the ABA, then they will have to fight for their innocence in front of adjudication panel.
The report mentioned that accepting the offer of the ABA would mean Red Bull will be subjected to minor sporting penalties and a fee, without risking having Constructors’ or Drivers’ 2021 Championship points deducted.
However it seems that the energy drinks outfit are still adamant they have done nothing wrong, and do not seem willing to accept the FIA’s offer.
Red Bull/FIA meeting has no outcome
Sky Sports further reported on Saturday, that a 15 minute meeting took place between Red Bull team boss Christian Horner and FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem on Friday with no outcome announced from the meeting.
Red Bull minor breach of the cost cap means that team could have spent up to $7.5-Million over the mandated $145-Million budget, with the report on Sky Sports F1 claiming the actual amount is in the region of $1.8-Million.
“One is to do with catering costs, while another is believed to be redundancy and sick pay issues for employees,” the report mentioned.
“A big factor in Red Bull’s overspend is understood to be the costs of unused spare parts for the car,” it added.
Red Bull were planning a press conference on Friday in Austin, but it was postponed until the talks with the FIA took place.
Christian Horner will be part of the team principals’ FIA press conference on Saturday, where the subject will be definitely raised, while Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto and McLaren CEO Zak Brown are present.
Worth noting that Brown sent a letter to the FIA claiming what Red Bull did should be considered as “cheating”.
En na dik een kwartier komen ze samen naar buiten, Horner en Ben Sulayem. #F1 pic.twitter.com/SsAEseJ584
— Erik van Haren (@ErikvHaren) October 21, 2022