When the Formula One championship gets tough, the technical war is the first sign of growing tension. Between requests to the FIA and jabs in the media, both McLaren and Red Bull are trying to throw obstacles in each other’s way. If in the last Grand Prix it was McLaren’s turn to remove the “flexible” rear wing, in the United States Grand Prix at the Austin circuit it’s Red Bull’s turn to explain the meaning of that T-tray located inside the cockpit, unlike the other teams who have it outside. The issue remains shrouded in mystery, as no one fully understands how it works, but there is significant unrest among the various team principals.
“Breaking the rules of parc fermé is a serious problem, and there should be consequences. This has happened in various sports, from baseball to football. We trust that the FIA will propose a transparent and satisfactory solution for all other teams. To my knowledge, we are not the only ones with these suspicions,” Zak Brown said at the press conference ahead of the United States Grand Prix.
“We have full confidence in the FIA, and I think they are analyzing the process. There has been a lot of fuss around the issue, but we don’t know anything until it is investigated,” added Oliver Oakes with a diplomatic tone. “I have worked for the FIA, so I am sure of what they are doing. There are many other gray areas of the car, and parc fermé is not a new rule. For 15 years, technicians have checked that we do not adjust mechanical components during that period, so it’s not extra stress. You can change the height of the front or rear with a click, as well as the roll bar or suspensions, but the Federation monitors every moment. There are cameras and marshals in every garage all the time, from the end of qualifying until the start of the race,” explained Laurent Mekies, the French engineer who currently works as the team principal of the RB Formula One Team
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