Red Bull admits money is their main motivation in pushing for action against the FIA and Ferrari following their private settlement.
Thankfully for the Scuderia, the coronavirus outbreak has taken most of the attention away from the controversial agreement, which was made after the governing body couldn’t conclusively determine if the engine Ferrari used in 2019 was illegal or not.
Although earlier this week it was confirmed that Mercedes, who had led the initial ‘gang of seven’ teams in calling for more transparency from the FIA on the matter, had pulled out.
“Mercedes is out of action at short notice,” confirmed Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko via Auto Motor und Sport.
It is understood that change came after a recent conversation between Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius and Ferrari chairman John Elkann.
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But with their departure, it means the Anglo-Austrian squad has taken over the reins in leading the now ‘gang of six’, with team boss Christian Horner vowing to continue the fight.
“The whole thing has left a bad taste,” he said. “For us, it’s about a lot of money.
“It makes a difference of $20 million whether we finish second or third in the world championship, and each of our employees has an additional bonus payment based on that.
“We cannot just leave it like that.”
As for the competitive aspect, Ferrari has been forced into big changes to their engine for 2020, which is partly why it is thought they’re off the pace of their rivals.
Also, the FIA has taken action by adding a second encrypted fuel flow meter to the cars, which they believe will now stop any ‘aliasing’ which is basically when the fuel passes through the sensor in such a way it, it seems to be in line with the limit of 100kg per hour but in reality, it is actually producing more.
RaceFans explained such a trick could have been worth upto 50hp in performance for Ferrari, explaining their considerable advantage in qualifying.