There are calls from teams to change how certain expenses are considered under cost cap rules introduced into F1 at the start of 2021.
Rules now govern what teams can spend on their racing operation, including operational and capital expenditures.
It’s proved a successful change in philosophy for the sport and has gone a long way towards transforming teams into profit-making enterprises.
The rules were designed to level the playing field by preventing teams at the front of the grid from simply spending their way to victory while those at the other end struggle to merely survive.
By any measure, that has been achieved with all 10 teams now in healthy financial positions – and others vying to join them in coming seasons.
However, there are pressure points within the current regulations which, according to Williams boss James Vowles, ensures the divide between the haves and the have-nots remains.
As Vowles’ team looks to close the gap on rivals after over a decade of under-investment, limits surrounding capital expenditure stand in the way.
“Where we are at the moment, the numbers aren’t small, but in fact, they’re scarily large on what we would have to spend on the site and in infrastructure,” he explained.
“The site’s okay, that’s actually external to the cost cap, interestingly enough, but on machines, for example, simulators, or the software I was talking about, or your composites facility… I can give you a list; there is a list, in fact.
“What we’re looking for is the ability to show where we are today, where the benchmark is, and the ability to spend to catch back up.”
Exceptions have already been granted for expenditures that would have ordinarily fallen under the cost cap; Aston Martin has already benefited.
McLaren will soon bring a new wind tunnel online, an asset it was able to invest in outside of the F1 cost cap.
Team boss Andrea Stella revealed he has sympathy for Vowles’ plight, recognising his team is in a similar situation.
“McLaren is a team that has operated without infrastructure, or infrastructure at the same level as some top teams for a long time,” he explained.
“This is the reason we have invested largely, to be able to have a new wind tunnel and a new simulator, a composite facility, even if actually these infrastructures haven’t seen the light yet.
“So we are sympathetic, and we understand the point,” he added.
“We are operating at the limit in terms of cost cap from a CapEx point of view, and actually, we would welcome a conversation about relaxing some of these limits because we would like to further invest.
“It’s a complex topic.”
Alpine too, which has this week received a more than USD 200 million injection after a group of investors, including Ryan Reynolds, bought 24 percent of the team, supports Vowles.
“Before the cost cap came in, we talked about it for quite some time,” Otmar Szafnauer said.
“I think the FIA, along with the teams and FOM, did a good job of big focus on the operating expenditure.
At the time, if I remember correctly, CapEx was also going to be capped, and some of the bigger teams with bigger budgets started getting their infrastructure ready for the cost cap and spending a lot of money on tools because they knew, thereafter, it would be more difficult.
“Those that didn’t have the budgets at the time couldn’t do the same.
“So I think it’s only fair that we level the playing field on infrastructure and the tools that you fundamentally need to go Formula 1 racing.
“That’s what we’re talking about here,” he continued.
“I know we’ve done it once already for wind tunnels; so, for example, Aston didn’t have a state-of-the-art wind tunnel, and we gave them dispensation, gave everyone dispensation on wind tunnels.
“I think we need to do the rest on fundamental infrastructure.”
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