Lewis Hamilton concerned Formula One could face further cost cap breaches
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British Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton also expressed sympathy for rookie Nyck de Vries, who was sacked by Alpha Tauri.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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BUDAPEST – Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton said on Thursday he was concerned that Formula One could face further breaches of the cost cap this season, after teams escaped “big punishment” in 2022 for previous overspending.
Media reports in Italy and Germany this week suggested that at least two of the 10 teams could be in breach of last season’s cap of US$140 million (S$186 million).
The governing FIA said its auditing process remains ongoing.
Red Bull were fined US$7 million last season for a “minor overspend”
Aston Martin, owned by Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll, and Williams were fined for procedural breaches.
Champions Red Bull have since gone on one of the most dominant runs in the sport’s history, chasing a record 12th successive victory this weekend in Hungary after winning 20 of the last 21 races.
“It’s definitely a concern,” Hamilton, 38, told Sky Sports television when asked about the possibility of a team being in breach of the financial rules.
“There wasn’t really a big punishment last time so there’s no real... there will be people that probably go for it again and know they are just going to get a slap on the wrist.”
Mercedes teammate and fellow Briton George Russell concurred that there needed to be stiffer punishments.
“There were breaches last year and clearly the punishment didn’t fit the crime,” said the 25-year-old, whose once-dominant team have being playing catch-up since new rules were introduced in 2022.
“We don’t want to be seeing that happen again and if it’s a second-time offender, the punishment should be even greater than what perhaps is a fair punishment,” he added.
Russell said he trusted the FIA and “they won’t be letting anybody get away with something that shouldn’t have happened under their watch.”
Federico Lodi, the FIA’s single-seater financial regulations director, said teams sent an interim submission in June last year for the 2022 season and a full submission by the end of March 2023.
April was spent reviewing each team’s submitted 150-200 pages of information in detail, with follow-up questions and requests for clarification.
The on-site audits started in early May and were expected to last for months, with Lodi saying it was difficult to commit to a rigid timeline despite increasing the dedicated staff from four to 10.
Hamilton also expressed sympathy for rookie Nyck de Vries, sacked by AlphaTauri
AlphaTauri is the junior sister team in the Red Bull stable and they promptly offered de Vries’ seat to Red Bull’s Australian reserve driver Daniel Ricciardo for the remainder of this season.
When asked about the abrupt dismissal of the 28-year-old Dutchman, Hamilton said: “I was definitely surprised to see the decision they took with poor Nyck.
“He’s such a talented young man and such a nice guy as well.”
REUTERS, AFP
