FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem says Formula One will not make rule changes in a bid to prevent Red Bull and Max Verstappen from enjoying a prolonged period of dominance.
Red Bull have won every single race so far this season, with defending champion Verstappen winning seven Grand Prix and teammate Sergio Perez winning the other two. Verstappen currently sits first in the driver standings and is a whopping 81 points ahead of Perez in second place and 98 points clear of Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso in third.
They also enjoyed a dominant 2022 season, with Verstappen winning his second world title by 146 points and only five of the 22 races won by a non-Red Bull driver. As a result, Lewis Hamilton urged the FIA to step in and prevent Red Bull from continuing to dominate the sport.
Hamilton's comments came after Red Bull chief Christian Horner admitting they have already begun preparing for the 2024 season despite not even being halfway through the 2023 campaign. "Ultimately, it's likely that bit by bit, by the end of the year, we'll catch Red Bull, but that's only because they're already focusing on next year's car because they're so far ahead," Hamilton said.
"They don't have to make any changes to this year's car any more because they're so far ahead, just cruising 100 points ahead of us. I think the FIA should put a time when everyone is allowed to start development on their next car.
"So, [for example] August 1st, that's when everyone can start, so no-one can get an advantage for next year, because that sucks. Do you not think that would make more sense?
"Say, for example, when you start the season and you know you have a bad car, you can say, 'Actually, I'm not going to bother developing this car, I'll put all the money into next year's car and have an advantage then'.
"It needs to change because that's why you have dominance for so long. They keep allowing it to happen. When Ferrari were ahead the same thing happened there – when Red Bull were ahead with Seb [Vettel] back in the day they could start earlier, they were always ahead."
However, Ben Sulayem has rejected Hamilton's plea, insisting it would be "unfair" if the FIA were to "punish people for being better". Speaking ahead of the British Grand Prix, Ben Sulayem said: "If we go about what's good and bad we'll open the door.
"I mean, was it good for Mercedes? Fair enough? It is [Verstappen's] time, it's Red Bull's time. What do we do ... punish the good kid? No, let's go and make the other teams good. Nobody's stopping the other teams from being better. We cannot punish people for being better, for trying harder. That is unfair."
