Marko sees danger: 'None of the top teams are within budget cap limit'

The budget cap threatens to become another important issue for the FIA this season. Due to high inflation and the consequent rising prices, it is becoming increasingly difficult for teams to adhere to the budget cap. While the smaller teams have not yet encountered such problems, the larger teams have been calling for action from the FIA for several weeks.

Red Bull Racing in particular has spoken out several times in recent weeks about the consequences of the budget cap. Christian Horner has already indicated that they would have to miss races to stay within the limit of the budget cap. Not only Red Bull would have such problems, but as many as seven of the ten F1 teams would have to miss races in that case.

All top teams outside the limit

Helmut Marko also sees that it will be difficult to stay within the budget cap with the increasing prices, he explained to Sport1. "None of the three top teams is currently within the budget limit. The transport costs have risen by 60 percent in some cases, as have the material costs."

The cost of such parts is therefore much larger than budgeted at the beginning of the season and therefore the teams will have to make compromises within their own budgets to stay under the limit. According to Marko, however, the FIA is open to talks. "There have already been talks about a certain inflation adjustment. First the pandemic, then the war, these are events that were not foreseeable and these rates of inflation and growth are not normal either."

Should teams stop developing?

Whether the talks will actually change anything is not yet known. What is clear, however, is that a number of teams are not keen on increasing the budget cap. Alpine team boss Otmar Szafnauer has already indicated that he is not in favor of an increase and that the top teams will have to adapt to the limit. Even if it means that they can no longer develop or have to miss races.