The FIA has confirmed that Red Bull did breach the 2021 $145m budget cap, however the sport's governing body has described the breach as 'minor'.

In keeping with the professionalism we have come to expect from Formula One's governing body, at precisely the time the report was due to be issued the FIA website crashed.

The exact details of Red Bull's overspend isn't known, but the FIA says it was minor, which means less than 5%, with some claiming the exact amount was around $2m.

According to today’s report, the FIA Cost Cap Administration has issued certificates of compliance to seven of the ten Competitors:

Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One Team is considered to be in Procedural Breach of the Financial Regulations

Oracle Red Bull Racing is considered to be in Procedural and Minor Overspend Breaches of the Financial Regulations

Williams Racing has complied with the Financial Regulations in respect of the 2021 Reporting Period with the exception of a previous Procedural Breach in regard to which the Cost Cap Administration entered into an ABA with Williams in May 2022. This Procedural Breach was then remediated by Williams in a timely, cooperative and transparent manner.

Aston Martin's "procedural breach" is understood to refer to incorrect form filling.

"The review of the reporting documentation submitted has been an intensive and thorough process," reads today's statement, "and all competitors gave their full support in providing the required information to assess their financial situation during this first year of the financial regulations.

"The FIA Cost Cap Administration notes that all competitors acted at all times in a spirit of good faith and cooperation throughout the process.

"The FIA would also note that with respect to this first year of the application of the financial regulations the intervention of the FIA Cost Cap Administration has been limited to reviewing the submissions made by the competitors and that no full formal investigations were launched.

"The FIA Cost Cap Administration is currently determining the appropriate course of action to be taken under the financial regulations with respect to Aston Martin and Red Bull and further information will be communicated in compliance with the regulations."

Other than not detailing the exact details of Red Bull's transgression, the FIA has yet to confirm what action will be taken.

Certainly, today's statement does not reveal anything like the sort of overspend that Mercedes and Ferrari were claiming, however, it does fly in the face of Christian Horner's insistence that the team had not breached the cap.

Nonetheless, other than being told what action will be taken for the breach, it will be interesting to know exactly how much Red Bull overspent by and why, and finally where exactly did Mercedes regarding the breach information come from?

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Spindoctor, 15/10/2022 18:59

"The Tumbleweed rolls on...."

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2. Posted by ffracer, 14/10/2022 14:10

"What if the mole was an ex Mercedes employee "snatched" by that RBR hunting raid to bolster their new engine division..."

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3. Posted by Editor, 12/10/2022 12:04

"@ Hobgoblin

Like it"

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4. Posted by Hobgoblin, 12/10/2022 11:58

"@Editor - it would be Toto's fault"

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5. Posted by Editor, 12/10/2022 9:22

"If Geri Horner were to get pregnant, it wouldn't be a minor pregnancy or a major pregnancy, she would simply be pregnant."

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6. Posted by Stitch431, 12/10/2022 9:16

"@Spindoctor: fact is, he knew in advance about it, and that is worrying. There is a leak within the FIA reporting to him and THAT should be punished because that is a real threat to fair racing!
And regarding your question: he is just making such big fuss in order to get that in the head of people so they will be disappointed (at least the part who want to see Red Bull punished) if the punishment is not severe.He has done that last year all year long. Calling, mailing Masi almost every minute. His memory however, only goes back as far as the last incident of the last race but even if we go back to the first corner of that same race, we will see Lewis got away with the very same mistake, Leclerc now has been punished for inSuzuka. He works like Donald Trump. Offloading so much sh.. that you don't know where to start to clean it all up."

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7. Posted by kenji, 12/10/2022 2:19

"@Spindoctor...I'm speculating here but it's quite possible that Wolff knew that he could inflict
'massive' reputational damage by claiming what he did despite the fact that the FIA had not released any facts at all. Think it through. The masses will not pick up on that detail, as exhibited here, as all they care about is that it is RB in the firing line. If RB have been adjudged guilty then they will pay for their trangressions but what that amounts to has not been determined by those who are vested with the right to levy said penalty. Witnessing the salivation by the righteous at the altar of ultimate RB retribution is hardly edifying...but expected!"

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8. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 11/10/2022 20:00

"@kenji - Wolff did what you’d expect of a team principal - certainly in the current F1 era - by trying to put maximum pressure on both the FIA and his main competitor. He was asked to comment on the rumours, and he did so. He clearly had information that indicated the overspend was significant. I’m sure you’ll agree that it’s very likely that RBR has been lobbying and negotiating with the FIA team, in an effort to reduce the size of the over spend. Maybe the originally assessed amount was indeed “massive” but has been pared down to ensure it fits into the lower category. After all, the FIA is already in a real predicament with this lower level infringement. Imagine having to deal with the penalty for a larger overspend. It suits both parties for the margin to be reduced. I’d been surprised if there hasn’t already been some sort of plea bargaining deal discussed before they made the announcement. "

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9. Posted by Spindoctor, 11/10/2022 15:30

"@kenji
If Wolff had access to privileged information allegedly "leaked" to him personally from a mole in FIA, how come his information was incorrect? As you are at pains to point-out RBR's error was not "massive", but merely minor. Or maybe, as part of a deep-rooted conspiracy, he was deliberately getting it wrong to help disguise his sources?"

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10. Posted by kenji, 11/10/2022 12:19

"@Ricardo_Sanchez....ask yourself one simple question...why did Wollf rush to judgement by releasing misleading information prior to the FIA? A conspiracy is determined by how many people are involved and in this case there is more than one. Wolff labelled the overspend as 'massive' yet the FIA correctly determined it to be a 'minor breach' in accordance with rules as published. Evidently bandwagon riding is the game of the day and this has not fully played out yet. What happens down the line will be of great interest and hopefully we'll find who is the 'rat in the ranks'."

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11. Posted by Stitch431, 11/10/2022 11:35

"@Ricardo_sanchez https://www.pitpass.com/73783/The-Amazing-Lehman-Brothers?fes_page=2
read this and you will understand ;-)"

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12. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 11/10/2022 11:22

"@Stitch431 - a “planted lawyer” who was also controlling the amounts spent by RBR, presumably? One with the ability to travel back to 2021 and determine how much should be spent by the team and then put together the paper trail that led to the FIA questioning the RBR submission. That’s quite a talent!

"

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13. Posted by Stitch431, 11/10/2022 11:02

"Toto was spending his holidays with Domenicali (no people, he has no ties with Ferrari. Walk on. nothing to look at), and Flavio Briatore on his Yacht ... What would they have been planning? A "planted" lawyer inside the FIA (again Toto) might come in handy if someone would like to create an FIA report in favor of .. well not Red Bull ... "

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14. Posted by Wokingchap, 11/10/2022 10:37

"This really is dirty blot on RB's reputation, especially on Horner's, he was lying all along so what lies is he going come out with to justify their overspend? Consequences should be severe, let's hope they're not too laughable."

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15. Posted by Editor, 11/10/2022 10:02

"@ Hobgoblin

WE couldn't resist the picture... it's what Christian would have wanted"

Rating: Positive (5) Rate comment: Positive | NegativeReport this comment

Red Bull did breach 2021 budget cap

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