‘Many things you cannot trust on a race car’ with Red Bull under spotlight

Former FIA man Laurent Mekies says while there are “many things you cannot trust” in an F1 car, Formula 1 can trust the FIA to make sure the rules aren’t being broken.

Red Bull made headlines as Formula 1 returned to action at the United States Grand Prix, the team holding up their hand after a report revealed one team had a bib trick on their car.

Red Bull’s ‘Bibgate’ made headlines in Austin

The trick allows the bib, or T-Tray, to be adjusted which changes the airflow underneath the car which affects the car’s downforce.

It’s a trick, the report claimed, that would allow the team to make changes between qualifying and the Grand Prix which is against the regulations.

But while Red Bull said yes they had just such a system, the team insisted it was not used under Parc Ferme conditions as it is complicated to access.

Red Bull subsequently carried out a demonstration for the FIA after the opening practice hour in Austin, showing motorsport’s governing body how the bib height adjustment mechanism is accessed.

More on Red Bull’s adjustable bib

👉Front bib and T-tray explained: The F1 car part under suspicion in new tech row

👉Details emerge on how Red Bull’s bib height adjustment is operated

Mekies, who previously worked with the FIA in safety , reckons even if rivals don’t want to “trust” the secrets that are hidden in the RB20, or any F1 car for that matter, they can trust that the FIA are aware of what goes on in a Grand Prix weekend.

“I was at the FIA,” the VCARB team boss told the media in Friday’s press conference in Austin, “and therefore, I fully trust the FIA.

“Seriously, there is many, many things you cannot trust in a race car. And the Parc Fermé is not exactly a new rule. It’s been there for 15 years.

“So for 15 years, the FIA had to watch if we were not adjusting stuff that we could mechanically adjust during that time from qualifying to the race, so there is nothing new there. So I don’t think it’s a new additional stress.

“You can change your front ride height or your rear ride height or your anti-roll bar or your damper settings probably with a click or a spanner. But the FIA make sure that you don’t do that.

“And we have cameras and we have the marshals with us in our garage around the car during the whole time in which we are in the garage between the end of the qualy to the start of the race. So I don’t think it’s a new concern.

“I think the FIA has to ensure that we don’t touch at all any of the car specifications or settings and I don’t think there is anything new here.”

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner believes rivals are making too big of a deal out of ‘Bibgate’.

“Every car has a tool that they can adjust the front of the bib,” he said. “Ours is located at the front, in front of the footwell.

“It’s been there for, I think, over three years. You’ve got to have the pedals, other panels, and pipework out in order to be able to get to it.

“If you think that there’s some kind of handbrake or lever that the drivers can activate with a low, medium, or high setting, I’m really sorry to disappoint you!”

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