Lewis Hamilton warned the FIA that their Formula 1 cost cap rules will be rendered useless unless they come down hard on teams that overspend.
Red Bull were accused by the governing body of a "minor" breach after analysis of their accounting for the 2021 season. The team responded with a statement in which they said they were "surprised and disappointed" by the accusation, and maintained their belief that they complied with the regulations.
The FIA has offered an 'accepted breach agreement' to the team, suggesting a punishment for their alleged overspend. If accepted, Red Bull would have to publicly take responsibility for breaking the rules and details of how much they went over the cost cap by would be published.
But until then, fans are in the dark about how much Red Bull have supposedly overspent by, and what the punishment will be. This has led to plenty of unhelpful speculation over whether or not Red Bull deliberately flouted the rules, and some suggestions that Max Verstappen's title from last season should be stripped away as punishment.
Hamilton would be the beneficiary of that as the Dutchman's closest rival last year. Giving his thoughts on the situation in Austin, the Mercedes driver stopped short of suggesting any penalties but made it clear he feels the FIA has to treat the matter very seriously to avoid setting a dangerous precedent.
"I have my own opinion of what we did as a team and how we did it last year, and I'm really proud of that and believe in what we earned," he told reporters. "It doesn't really change a huge amount, but I do think the sport needs to do something about this in the future, otherwise, if they are relaxed with these rules then all of the teams will just go over.
"Spending millions more and then only having a slap on the wrist won't be great for the sport – they might as well not have a cost cap in the future. That's all I've got to say... Like I've said in the past, I think the integrity of the sport is right now, where the decisions will hopefully be made.
"I do believe that [FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem] and his team will make the right decisions. I have to believe that, I want to give them the benefit of the doubt, naturally. Otherwise, I'm just focused on doing the best job I can. What they have done, is done."
Red Bull were planning a meeting with reporters on Friday morning to discuss the subject, but that was delayed. The issue will certainly be discussed on Saturday afternoon with Christian Horner scheduled to appear in the FIA's team principals press conference. That may be when he reveals his team's decision as to whether or not they will give the green light for the accepted breach agreement offered to them by the sport's governing body.
