Marko: 'Only one F1 team had information about budget cap Red Bull'

Helmut Marko continues to question the fact that rival Formula 1 teams seemed to know about a possible financial breach by Red Bull Racing long before the FIA released details about it. He points to former Mercedes employee Shaila-Ann Rao, who has held a top position at the FIA for several months.

Rao stepped in as Secretary General for Autosport when the FIA suddenly parted ways with Peter Bayer. Before then, she was working as a personal adviser to Toto Wolff, and so the appointment to the FIA raised eyebrows in the F1 paddock.

Marko does not trust former Mercedes employee at FIA

According to Marko, it is quite a coincidence that a former Mercedes employee holds a high position at the FIA and that Mercedes in particular seemed to know the case. "There was information released beforehand which we did not have, which actually only one team had," the Red Bull adviser said in conversation with RTL.

He continued: "It is strange: a Mercedes employee moved to the FIA, worked on these documents for the cost cap at Mercedes and was then responsible for checking them at the FIA. In our opinion, there is certainly a compliance violation or at least an indication of compliance violations. The whole thing does not make a good impression."

Red Bull Racing was penalised by the FIA for slightly exceeding the budget ceiling, although the governing body acknowledged that there was no malicious intent. About the US$7 million fine, the team is a little concerned, but the lost time in the wind tunnel hurts.

Marko: Red Bull has an advantage the FIA cannot take away

However, Marko argues that the team will simply invest the lost time and costs in other areas where it might otherwise have had to make savings. Moreover, he stresses yet again that Red Bull still has an advantage that cannot be taken away by a penalty: Adrian Newey. Marko describes the top designer as "an added bonus for Red Bull, which fortunately cannot be taken away with a penalty like this".