Red Bull Racing is in talks with the FIA over a plea deal in relation to the 2021 cost cap breach.
In fact, the ABA (Accepted Breach Agreement) means that the team admits it broke the rules with its spending for 2021 and accepts the penalty imposed.
If the team does not agree to ABA, the case will move to the next stage, which is an investigation by the Cost Limitation Commission.
It is understood that team boss Christian Horner is likely to explain the team’s stance on breaking the cost cap at a press conference in Austin today, although this has yet to be confirmed by the team.
However, given the timing, it is unlikely that any deal will be reached before he speaks.
Since rumors of a breach by Red Bull first surfaced during the Singapore Grand Prix race weekend, Horner has insisted the team has full confidence in the figures it submitted to the FIA in March.
The day after the Japanese GP, the FIA officially confirmed that the team was guilty of “procedural and minor overspending offences” after reviewing documents submitted by all teams.
More details about Red Bull’s overspending have started to emerge, although nothing has been officially confirmed by the FIA.
The total figure involved is believed to be around $1.8 million, which puts the offense within the “minor violation” limit of 5% over the limit, or just over $7 million.
The team appears to have breached several areas of the FIA’s financial regulations, which are regularly updated with amendments that have not been published on their website or made public.
One is the distribution of food costs in the factory and on the track. In addition, there are believed to be redundancy and sick pay issues related to key employees.
A subject that is directly related to the costs of managing cars is the distribution of the value of unused spare parts.
There is also a UK-specific tax issue believed to be similar to the procedural breach involving Aston Martin.
Andrew Benson, Editor-in-Chief of F1 at the BBC has obtained confidential information from the paddock where he says:
“The FIA made an offer to Red Bull for terms of accepting the breach agreement, for their breach of the budget limit. The details, as with all matters relating to this matter, are confidential for now. Now Red Bull has to decide whether to accept or go before the judicial commission.”
