McLaren’s Zak Brown was vocal about Red Bull Racing’s in cockpit ride-height adjuster front bib F1 device and said that other team principals also had concerns. Mercedes’ team boss Toto Wolff has shown that to be the case as he labelled the situation “outrageous” post-race in Austin this past Sunday.
Earlier in the weekend, Red Bull Racing’s ride-height adjuster had been drawing plenty of interest including seals from the FIA to ensure it isn’t utilized when it shouldn’t be. Red Bull Racing team boss Christian Horner had been given his right to reply to the situation on Sky Sports F1 and he said of the issue: “I think there’s been a bit of moaning from one of our rivals. And it’s the FIA’s job to look into these things. It’s on a list of the open-source components, so it’s been publicly available for the last three years. The FIA is happy with it, I think, just to satisfy perhaps some paranoia elsewhere in the paddock. I feel that it’s sometimes to distract from perhaps what’s going on in your own house, then sometimes you try to light a fire somewhere else.”
At the Circuit of the Americas, Wolff was asked for his view on the device seeing how Brown had been quoted as saying other team principals shared his concerns.
“My view is from the distance of what I’ve seen and what I’ve heard. It’s…” what followed was a lengthy pause as the man leading Mercedes wanted to choose the word he felt would best describe the situation. “…outrageous.”
Red Bull Racing had their test to the FIA – as to how the innovative design works – broadcasted on the F1 tv network. What was shown was the extensive lengths that mechanics need to go to as a way for the device work.
“I really like that when they put this real broom in the car to demonstrate how the only way that getting changed,” Wolff quipped. “I wonder how long it took them to make this, and to stick it in there. I didn’t know that in Formula 1 that we were using such devices. It’s not good enough to say that’s it ‘we promise we’re not going to do it again’.”
Having used that phrasing, Wolff was asked as to whether he was concerned that the team was potentially using or did he just think that it’s wrong that you would have a device like that in the first place.
“Why would you design something and put two marks on it for two positions?” Wolff replied. “Like you want to be done. Is that the precise decision-making in Formula One?”
The question hung in the air as it was then reminded to the Mercedes team boss that as far as The FIA’s head of single seaters, Nikolas Tombazis, is concerned, it’s a closed matter. As well as this, The FIA say they can’t go back and look over the last three years to see what happened. Therefore, on this point the 52-year-old team principal was sked what should happen and if The FIA should do more, perhaps interview people or do some deeper investigation? Not be drawn on such headline making leading question, Wolff simply replied: “I cannot speak. I cannot speak for the FIA at all. I cannot speak for Nicolas. Obviously, that’s something that’s been not spotted for a long time.”
When mentioned later on as to what could be done to ease his concern, Wolff said: “I think the leadership of the FIA is going to look at that and say, ‘what are we doing with this?'”
Formula One in 2024 is gripping enough without this latest saga. One can imagine that even though the powers that be may have considered the matter closed, there are still some happy to voice concern and keep the spotlight on Red Bull Racing for some time to come.
