'25 per cent reduction in wind tunnel for Red Bull denied'

On Thursday, Autosport.com reported that there will be more clarity on Friday about Red Bull Racing and Aston Martin's punishment for the budget cap violation. According to earlier reports, it would be a 25 per cent reduction in total wind tunnel time, but that does not seem to be correct.

Also De Telegraaf Now reports that the FIA will make Red Bull and Aston Martin's sanction public on the Friday before the Mexico Grand Prix. According to the medium, a press conference by Red Bull themselves will follow later in the day to explain the matter.

'Do not reduce wind tunnel time by 25 per cent'

The team spent several days in Austin holding talks with the FIA on the punishment that will follow for exceeding the budget cap in 2021. The team is expected to receive a hefty fine, but also a reduction in wind tunnel time. According to previous information, the reduction would be as much as 25 per cent, but according to De Telegraaf, this is denied. Still, the team will be hit hard by this sporting penalty, as it is only allowed to use 70 per cent of the aerodynamic tests in the wind tunnel and computer simulations because of the constructors' title anyway.

Red Bull themselves believes that it is purely an administrative error. According to sources, the amount involved is $1.8 million, but most of this would be fictitious tax reductions or refunds that Red Bull would not have had to include in the figures. The final amount would then come to half a million dollars. Nevertheless, the FIA will crack down by handing out not only a financial penalty but also a sporting penalty.