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Formula One seems to be in a bit of a mess over it's joint statement with Ferrari.
For those who haven't followed this, In the 2019 season, the Ferrari Formula One cars seemed to have a straight line speed advantage over the rest of the cars. Formula One has a set amount of fuel allowed per race. They also have a regulation on how much fuel can be fed to the engine which is monitored by a flow meter. More speed usually requires more power which requires more fuel which should show on the flow meter data. Red Bull suspected that Ferrari were manipulating the data and relayed their suspicions to the governing body. Formula One issued rules clarifications noting that it would be a violation of the sporting regulations to do that and put Ferrari under scrutiny. After that, Ferrari lost their pace in the last few races. The teams had been waiting for Formula One to make those findings public. At the end of pre-season testing, Formula One made this statement.
The other teams issued their own statement this week.
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/...ttlement-with-fia.2T30ZzkHTswYcgsrVDYVEz.html
This is important to other teams because they get money determined by how they finish in the points. If Ferrari were cheating, the other teams feel some penalty should be applied. The participation of Ferrari is essential to Formula One so it puts the governing body in a tenuous position. Their statement was meant to assure teams that Ferrari will not be breaking the rules without saying that they were and they hoped the other teams would settle for that. It seems to have inflamed the situation.
The FIA would have been better off saying that Ferrari might have been cheating but they couldn't prove it conclusively instead of announcing a confidential arrangement.
The threat of court action isn't looking good.
For those who haven't followed this, In the 2019 season, the Ferrari Formula One cars seemed to have a straight line speed advantage over the rest of the cars. Formula One has a set amount of fuel allowed per race. They also have a regulation on how much fuel can be fed to the engine which is monitored by a flow meter. More speed usually requires more power which requires more fuel which should show on the flow meter data. Red Bull suspected that Ferrari were manipulating the data and relayed their suspicions to the governing body. Formula One issued rules clarifications noting that it would be a violation of the sporting regulations to do that and put Ferrari under scrutiny. After that, Ferrari lost their pace in the last few races. The teams had been waiting for Formula One to make those findings public. At the end of pre-season testing, Formula One made this statement.
“After thorough technical investigations, it [the FIA] has concluded its analysis of the operation of the Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1 Power Unit and reached a settlement with the team,” read the statement. “The specifics of the agreement will remain between the parties.
“The FIA and Scuderia Ferrari have agreed to a number of technical commitments that will improve the monitoring of all Formula 1 Power Units for forthcoming championship seasons as well as assist the FIA in other regulatory duties in Formula 1 and in its research activities on carbon emissions and sustainable fuels.”
The other teams issued their own statement this week.
“We, the undersigned teams, were surprised and shocked by the FIA’s statement of Friday 28 February regarding the conclusion of its investigation into the Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1 Power Unit,” it read.
“An international sporting regulator has the responsibility to act with the highest standards of governance, integrity and transparency.
“After months of investigations that were undertaken by the FIA only following queries raised by other teams, we strongly object to the FIA reaching a confidential settlement agreement with Ferrari to conclude this matter.
“Therefore, we hereby state publicly our shared commitment to pursue full and proper disclosure in this matter, to ensure that our sport treats all competitors fairly and equally. We do so on behalf of the fans, the participants and the stakeholders of Formula One.
“In addition, we reserve our rights to seek legal redress, within the FIA’s due process and before the competent courts.”
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/...ttlement-with-fia.2T30ZzkHTswYcgsrVDYVEz.html
This is important to other teams because they get money determined by how they finish in the points. If Ferrari were cheating, the other teams feel some penalty should be applied. The participation of Ferrari is essential to Formula One so it puts the governing body in a tenuous position. Their statement was meant to assure teams that Ferrari will not be breaking the rules without saying that they were and they hoped the other teams would settle for that. It seems to have inflamed the situation.
The FIA would have been better off saying that Ferrari might have been cheating but they couldn't prove it conclusively instead of announcing a confidential arrangement.
The threat of court action isn't looking good.