What’s behind Ferrari and FIA’s controversial deal?
It all started during the 2019 F1 season, some teams were skeptical about Ferrari’s engine given their noticeable advantage on the straights. On the 28th of February 2020, when Formula 1’s governing body, the FIA, released a vague statement saying it had "reached a settlement" with Ferrari following an investigation into the engine it raced in the 2019 season. This wasn’t the only sketchy part, as it added "the specifics of the agreement remain between the parties.”
Understandably, the rivals & the fans were all surprised & demanded answers. Seven of their rival teams (McLaren, Mercedes, Racing Point, Red Bull, Renault, AlphaTauri and Williams) released a joint statement on the 4th of March demanding “full and proper disclosure of this matter” while threatening legal action. Most neutral fans plotted against Ferrari, but was there any wrongdoing from the Italian team?
On the 5th of March, the FIA responded “decided to enter into an effective and dissuasive settlement agreement with Ferrari to terminate the proceedings... to avoid the negative consequences that a long litigation would entail especially in light of the uncertainty of the outcome of such litigations.” They added: “This type of agreement is a legal tool recognized as an essential component of any disciplinary system and is used by many public authorities and other sport federations in the handling of disputes.”
Mercedes has since removed itself from the united group of teams which wrote the open letter calling for greater transparency. The issue has been put on hold because the 2020 season was about to start, so we expected more media questions about it as the season unfolds. Obviously, the season was stopped due to the Covid-19.
However, FIA president Jean Todt, speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, revealed the following: “We went to great lengths to understand what Ferrari was doing over the winter. Our people went to Italy especially for this. The easiest thing for me would have been to put the matter on file. But since there were these doubts, I asked my technicians to investigate the matter as thoroughly as possible”. Todt added: “We were unable to prove one hundred percent that they did something illegal.”
So there you have it, Ferrari might have been playing between the lines of the FIA rulebook just like Mercedes did by using the DAS system, but they couldn’t prove Ferrari guilty of any wrongdoings. Will this matter remain after F1 returns?