Red Bull looking for 'consistency' post-FIA's investigation into Abu Dhabi

Red Bull F1 team sporting director Jonathan Wheatley believes the FIA and F1 need to clarify the principles of racing and the regulations for teams and drivers.

Speaking in an interview on The Jack Threlfall Show, Red Bull manager expressed the need for more clarity and consistency in the rules and regulations going forward.

Highlighting the Abu Dhabi GP investigation and the role of race director and stewards, Wheatley said:

“It’s really important the FIA do their investigation, work with the teams on that investigation and we all follow whatever the outcome of that investigation is…If we look broad brush at race direction and the very difficult role the race director and the stewards have – and it is difficult – and we talk about the consistency of stewards’ decisions, consistency across the board…of course we would all love it to be very clear.”

Open to the outcome of the decisions taken after the investigation, Wheatley stressed the need for consistency in race management and steward decisions.

Amidst Mercedes’ complaints over inconsistencies in penalties, Red Bull had their own complaints pre-Abu Dhabi, involving the rules of enagement.

Expressing his views on the on-track battles, the Red Bull Sporting Director said:

“We’ve had this great over-arching philosophy of ‘let them race’. But then you have the black and white of the regulations, which is often very prescribed in terms of what penalty, or there is no wriggle room in it at all.”

Wheatley’s opinion refers to instances like Brazil where the lap 48 incident between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton went unpenalised. But a similar incident in Saudi Arabia received a penalty. The lap 48 controversy led to confusion amidst teams and drivers over racing tactics and penalties.

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Red Bull Sporting Director believes F1 needs a consistent sporting regulations

According to the Red Bull Sporting Director, F1 needs to maintain consistency in its rules of engagement on-track and the penalties incurred for flouting the rules. Wheatley believes the WMSC and FIA need to work with the teams to ensure there is a consistent set of regulations.

Explaining the need for a consistent set of regulations, Wheatley said:

“I think these are the areas of the sport that need to come from the very top. The World Motor Sport Council need to say ‘here are the principles by which we are going racing’ and then it’s up to the FIA and the teams to work together to ensure a consistent set of sporting regulations.”

While Verstappen was penalized severely throughout the season, Hamilton got away with cutting a corner on the first lap of the Abu Dhabi GP. A similar move made by the Dutchman in Jeddah resulted in him handing back the lead in the race.

Therefore, the conundrum surrounding the regulations is to receive clarity on the rules and principles of racing.