McLaren’s ‘doesn’t stack up’ concerns over Red Bull bib in ‘thorough FIA investigation’ call

McLaren’s CEO Zak Brown says aspects of Red Bull’s explanation of its bib height adjustment device “don’t stack up”.

Following on from Red Bull’s admission and explanation of its bib ride height device which has courted controversy at the United States Grand Prix, McLaren CEO Zak Brown has called upon the FIA to carry out a very “thorough” investigation.

Zak Brown: Red Bull had no choice but to reveal bib device

With attention focusing on the F1 paddock following a statement on Wednesday from the FIA confirming procedural adjustments to ensure front bib clearance cannot be easily modified, Red Bull put an end to the speculation by confirming it is the team at the heart of the matter in a statement to PlanetF1.com on Thursday.

“Yes, it exists although it is inaccessible once the car is fully assembled and ready to run,” a representative from Red Bull confirmed.

“In the numerous correspondence we have with the FIA, this part came up and we have agreed a plan going forward.”

The plan consists of additional seals on the access port, which is located beneath the driver’s heels and inaccessible without removal of several components – including the nose, pedals, and access panels.

With the FIA seemingly putting the matter to bed, Zak Brown revealed that he still has question marks over the existence of the device – which, in itself, doesn’t breach the technical regulations – as he spoke to Sky F1.

“Well, I think they probably had no choice, because there’s published, what are called open source components, where all the teams can see what each other are doing – you have to submit the drawings to the FIA, and all the teams have access if it’s an open source component,” he said.

“So anyone, every team, which is what we do, we look at it and you can see it.

“So I think there was no denying that they have the ability to access their front bib from inside the car. That’s undisputed.

“So I think they had no choice but to say, ‘Yes, we can’.

“From what we’ve seen, we know we can’t. We don’t have the access. It’s not designed that way, and from what we see in the other eight teams, don’t. So I think they had no choice.”

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Zak Brown’s calls for ‘very thorough’ FIA investigation

Asked whether he believes Red Bull may have used the device under parc fermé conditions – which would be a breach of the sporting regulations – Brown said the discovery of this would elevate the severity of the situation.

“Why would you design it to be inside the car, when the other nine other teams design it to be outside the car?” he said.

“Ingenuity is part of Formula 1, and then there are black-and-white rules.

“You cannot touch your race car, other than things like driver comfort.

“They [Red Bull] chose their words very carefully, saying “when the car is fully assembled”, but you’re allowed to not have the car fully assembled in parc fermé when you’re working on driver comfort.

“Also, what doesn’t quite stack up is the comment that you can modify it. Well, then why does the FIA feel they need to put a seal on it if it’s not accessible post or during parc fermé – why put a seal on it?”

The McLaren CEO said he is “very happy” to see the FIA keeping on top of the situation, and urged the governing body to be as thorough as possible to ensure conformity with the rulebooks.

“I think it needs to be a very thorough investigation because, if you touch your car from a performance standpoint, in or after parc fermé, that is a black-and-white material, substantial breach, which comes with massive consequences,” he said.

“Touching your car after parc fermé is highly illegal within the rules, so I think the FIA needs to get to the bottom of were they or weren’t they?

“Why would you design it to be inside the car when the nine other teams haven’t?

“So I think it’d be unfair of me to say… Of course, I have an opinion on whether I think they have or haven’t.

“But I think the FIA needs to be very diligent in their bottoming out whether they think they have or haven’t.

“When you see cleverly worded comments like ‘You can’t do it when it’s fully assembled’, but I know the car isn’t always fully assembled, and then the FIA feels they need to put a seal on it, why would the FIA need to put a seal on something if it wasn’t accessible?

“Transparency is critically important in today’s day and age. So I still have questions. I know from talking to other team bosses, they still have questions.

“So, until those questions are answered, I think it is still an ongoing investigation to bottom out what do we know?

“I’d like some more answers before I’m prepared to kind of go ‘Right, I guess they were or they weren’t, but I think the FIA will bottom it out.”

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