The Formula One paddock breathes a sigh of relief as the FIA awards all ten teams compliance certificates after inspectors probe the £111m spending ceiling
The Formula One paddock breathes a sigh of relief as the FIA awards all ten teams compliance certificates after inspectors probe the £111m spending ceiling
- Last year Red Bull was found to have overspent more than £400,000
- The FIA highlighted the need for spending regulation to secure the sport’s future
- The panel carried out checks on all non-F1 activities carried out by the teams
Formula 1 teams breathed a sigh of relief today as all ten teams were awarded certificates of compliance to last season’s cost cap.
After extensive investigations by the FIA, it was found that no one had broken the $140m mark (currently worth £111m).
FIA auditors looked into the potentially sensitive issue of teams using non-F1 operations to hide staff and development costs, but found no breaches.
The findings are based both on the teams’ own submissions, submitted to the FIA in March, and on independent research that included factory visits.
Under financial regulations, teams can no longer challenge a competitor’s compliance. The time for this has expired after whistleblowers were previously offered anonymity.
All 10 Formula 1 teams have received certificates of conformity from the sport’s governing body
Last year, Christian Horner (pictured) found Red Bull to have exceeded the spending ceiling by over £400,000
Article 6.11 states: “The decision of the cost cap assessors to issue a certificate of compliance to an F1 team shall not be subject to appeal.”
Last year Red Bull was found to have overspent just over £400,000. They were fined £5.5million and had their wind tunnel testing pay cut.
After heavy speculation about further violations this time, the teams received their certificates on Tuesday morning instead.
In a statement, the FIA confirmed: “The FIA confirms that its cost cap administration has now completed the review of the reporting documentation submitted by each participant who competed in the 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship for the 2022 reporting period. “
“The FIA Cost Cap Administration issued certificates of conformity to all ten participants.
“The review was an intensive and thorough process that started with a detailed analysis of the documents submitted by the competitors.
“In addition, there was a comprehensive review of all non-F1 activities undertaken by the teams, which included multiple on-site visits to the teams’ facilities and due diligence procedures to assess financial compliance.” The FIA Cost Cap Administration notes, that all participants have always acted in a spirit of good faith and cooperation throughout the process.
“The FIA also notes that the financial regulations are essential to the long-term financial stability of the sport and that they will continue to be developed and refined based on the outcome of each review process, both in terms of the regulations themselves, which are. ‘ are written and approved as part of the FIA Formula 1 governance process and how they are enforced and monitored.
“The FIA has made and will continue to make significant investments in this department, for the good of the sport.”
The FIA confirmed the award of the certificates in a statement on Tuesday – pictured: FIA President Mohammed ben Sulayem