Lewis Hamilton believes it is ‘necessary’ to penalize any team found to have exceeded the cost cap of Formula 1
Suzuka (Japan) (AFP) Seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton said Thursday that any team that breaks Formula One’s cost cap should be punished, after the FIA ??pushed the results of the investigation into next week. The FIA ??was due to reveal on Wednesday whether any team had breached last season’s $145 million budget cap, but released a statement instead saying the report would be delayed until Monday, October 10. Teams competing at the Singapore Grand Prix last weekend claimed that two teams, believed to be Red Bull and Aston Martin, had exceeded the limit, introduced last season to make the race more competitive. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen beat Mercedes’ Hamilton to win last season’s title on the final lap of a controversial final race in Abu Dhabi. Should any team exceed the cost cap, there is a range of penalties available, from fines for ‘minor’ max infractions to points deduction and exclusion from the tournament for a serious ‘substantial’ breach. Hamilton has warned that the integrity of the sport is at stake as he spoke to reporters ahead of this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka. Asked whether the teams found guilty should be punished, Hamilton said “I think it is necessary”, stressing that he did not know if there were teams that had broken the rules. – Trust required – “I was expecting these results to come out yesterday. I would like to think that if it is delayed it is because they are taking it very seriously,” he said. Hamilton said he was confident the FIA ??would handle the matter in the right way. “It would be bad for the sport if action is not taken if there is a breach,” he said. He claimed that Mercedes could have been in a different position last year had they spent more money but that wasn’t “the name of the game”. “I am grateful that our team is so strict,” he said. Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate, George Russell, said their team could “bring more performance to the table if we have more money to spend”. Russell said he would wait for the results but suggested that any team found guilty should lower the cost cap for next season. “You would expect the amount exceeded to be the amount that was deducted for next year’s budget and maybe a little bit more on top of that as a penalty,” he said. The FIA ??said the investigation was too complex to publish the results on Wednesday. The board also said allegations that they leaked details of the investigation were “unfounded.” Sebastian Vettel said it was necessary to stick to the outcome of the investigation. “You have to have a level of confidence, otherwise it will shake everything that is in your world when you talk about racing,” said the German, who won four world titles with Red Bull. “We want to be treated fairly when we race with others, and to be judged on that you have to trust that there are regulations in place.”
