Renault made an official protest against both cars of Racing Point at the end of the Styrian Grand Prix. This is a result of the debate about the copycat behaviour of the pink brigade, which would have imitated the car of Mercedes.
Update | 08:15 (July 13,2020) Racing Point not unique
Renault's protest against the legality of the Racing Point car was made on Sunday evening on the basis of regulations related to the intellectual property of the various teams. That much was clear.
The sporting regulations describe all elements that a team must design itself. This concerns just about all large parts that can be seen on the outside of the car. Why wouldn't Renault protest the Haas car?
The design may only be outsourced to the third party
The crux of their protest lies in the exception that the regulations make, according to an analysis by Auto Motor und Sport. Teams are allowed to outsource the design of these parts, as long as this third party is not another Formula 1 team or has any connection with another F1 team.
At Haas, these parts are designed by chassis builder Dallara. If it turns out that Mercedes had something to do with the design of the Racing Point car, it is therefore prohibited.
Last week the protests came mainly from Red Bull Racing to Mercedes. This time the midfield will be stirring. Renault (and some other teams as well) hasn't been happy at all since the winter tests that Racing Point has such a fast car.
The reason for this has mainly to do with the way in which Racing Point would have copied the car of world champion Mercedes. Racing Point itself even had to admit that their car looks suspiciously similar to Mercedes, but always stuck to the reasoning that this happens when you use the same wind tunnel.
Racing Point lightning fast on Sunday
The speed of the Racing Point became evident during the second race on the Red Bull Ring. Both Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll had a bad qualifying in the rain and went through like a hot knife in butter on Sunday afternoon. One by one their competitors were rolled up.
Reason for Renault to play hard to get and thus protest both cars for violating regulations related to the intellectual property of the cars.
Update | No decision in the short term
We don't have to expect a decision from the stewards on Sunday regarding the protest that Renault has filed against Racing Point. The race management of Formula 1 is going to take a look.
The FIA announces that Renault's protest against Racing Point is admissible and will be decided by the FIA on a date to be determined.