Abiteboul: We could cheat if we wanted to

Editor
Cyril Abiteboul: Engine rules need to change

Cyril Abiteboul: Engine rules need to change

Renault boss Cyril Abiteboul has called for engines to become standardised in order to eliminate all speculation of cheating in Formula 1.

Abiteboul claims that the current power unit regulations are so complex that it is bordering on impossible for the FIA to police teams in an effective manner.

The Frenchman said it would be currently possible to cheat with the engines and that all teams would know how to do it.

While Abiteboul does not suspect that anyone is doing so, the possibility that it could happen is enough to be a problem.

“I think that, frankly, if we wanted to cheat on the current engine, we would know how to do it, and that’s an issue,” Abiteboul told Motorsport.com.

“We are a very large corporation and we would never do such a thing like that, we can’t afford the reputational risk.

“I’m not saying that anyone is cheating, but I think it’d be good to get rid of all the speculation, by doing some local and targeted standardisation, and we’ve put forward some proposals in relation to that.”

And Abiteboul feels the time has come to seriously discuss those proposals for the good of the sport.

“I don’t want to create a debate here, but I think we need to think how we can help the FIA, regarding the enforceability of the regulations,” he added.

“I really believe that the complexity of the engine is such that I would not want to have myself to police it. So, I think we need to figure that out.

“I really believe that some elements of standardisation are not just useful but absolutely necessary if we want to retain some confidence between all the participants.”

Follow us on Twitter @Planet_F1 and like our Facebook page