Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has warned the FIA set a dangerous precedent with regulations, after a progress update on their bouncing technical directive was issued ahead of the British Grand Prix.
The technical directive was controversially added at the Canadian GP to tackle the "safety issue" of aggressive bouncing drivers experienced at recent street circuits in Baku and Miami, as a result of aerodynamic changes to this season's cars.
Formula One's governing body analysed data captured in Montreal in order to devise a metric that measures vertical acceleration loads to ultimately limit oscillations, something Horner has been outspoken against.
While safety is the FIA's primary concern in limiting the porpoising experienced so far this season, the Red Bull principal believes it is wrong for the FIA to overtly dictate how the cars are set up.
"It is too late in the day to be introducing changes for next year," Horner said. "We haven't governed for that and the cost involved, sometimes the unintended consequences for changing philosophies, it will affect what you carry over and it will affect the design and development.
"The most important thing and biggest way to achieve stable costs is stability. The cars will converge. You can see that already, the cars are certainly looking more familiar and that will continue over the next six-to-nine months.
"The most important thing is don't d*** with it, leave it alone and the teams will sort it out."
Mercedes have experienced significant 'porpoising' issues which have in turn affected their performance, with Horner previously suggesting they are trying to make as much of an issue out of it as possible.
It is understood, however, all 10 teams performed within the metric's parameters in Canada.
Meanwhile, Red Bull lead both the driver's and constructor's standings coming in Sunday's race at Silverstone.
"I understand on the grounds of safety that this is being introduced because the porpoising on a limited amount of cars is obviously at an extreme level," Horner added.
"They [the FIA] are keen to have a mechanism to control that but hopefully it is only something that will be there for this year as it is something that hopefully all the teams will be on top of and cars will converge next year.
"It is certainly not a precedent that we want to set otherwise setups will be dictated by FIA directives."
Fraser McConnell Returns for 2023-24 Nitrocross Season on June 16
Fraser McConnell will return to Dreyer & Reinbold Racing for the 2023-2024 Nitrocross season.
After an outstanding performance in the previous year, McConnell's return to the team is expected to further elevate their competitive edge and reinforce their position as one of the frontrunners in the championship.
McConnell, who finished an impressive third in the drivers' championship last year, proved his exceptional skills and unwavering determination. His innate talent combined with his unwavering commitment to excellence has made him a formidable force in the Nitrocross arena. With his return, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing is poised to build on their recent successes and secure their position as a leading contender in the upcoming season.
Having first joined forces with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing last year, McConnell's partnership with the team proved to be a harmonious alliance, with both sides mutually benefitting from the collaboration.
His strong work ethic and relentless pursuit of victory seamlessly aligned with the team's commitment to pushing the boundaries of performance and achieving success at the highest level.
McConnell expressed his enthusiasm regarding his return to Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.
"I'm beyond excited to be back with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing for the upcoming Nitrocross season. The team's dedication and unwavering support have played a significant role in my success, and I'm looking forward to continuing our journey together. We have unfinished business, and I'm determined to bring home the championship title this year," he said.
Team owner, Dennis Reinbold, shared his excitement regarding McConnell's return.
"Fraser's talent on the track is unparalleled, and we are thrilled to have him back for the 2023-24 Nitrocross season. His exceptional performance last year showcased his potential, and we firmly believe that with his skillset and dedication, he will be a major factor in the championship fight. We are fully committed to providing him with the resources and support necessary to excel and look forward to another fantastic season ahead,” Reinbold said.
Fraser McConnell and the Dreyer & Reinbold Racing crew will return to racing for round one of Nitrocross on June 16th & 17th in Jay, Oklahoma.
Max Verstappen says Lewis Hamilton title fight ‘would be great for the sport’
Max Verstappen said he would welcome the challenge of an “amazing” championship rematch with Lewis Hamilton.
Verstappen raced to a crushing victory at the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday following yet another one-sided display in his dominant Red Bull machine.
Hamilton finished runner-up to Verstappen with George Russell third in the other Mercedes.
Verstappen has won five of the opening seven rounds to establish a commanding 53-point title lead over team-mate Sergio Perez.
But Mercedes’ upturn in form at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya has provided Hamilton with renewed hope that his dream of a record eighth world title is not over.
Hamilton, who has not won a race since his contentious championship defeat to Verstappen at the 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi, said in Barcelona that he would continue in Formula One for as long as possible in order to fight Verstappen for the title again.
Verstappen is on course to race to a hat-trick of titles this season, but when asked how excited he would be about the prospect of going toe-to-toe with Hamilton next year, Verstappen replied: “It would be great for the sport.
“If there are more teams fighting upfront, and that is what they want to achieve, then honestly that would be amazing.
“Hopefully throughout the year it will get closer, and maybe next year there will be more teams up there.”
Hamilton has only six months to run on his Mercedes contract and the British driver, 38, met with team principal Toto Wolff on Monday in the hope of rubber-stamping a new deal.
The meeting is understood to be one of a series of discussions between Hamilton and Wolff, and not thought to be a definitive moment in negotiations.
It is anticipated that Hamilton’s extension will be a multi-year deal, extending Hamilton’s stay in F1 beyond his 40th birthday.
“I am focused on making sure we have the car next year to challenge Red Bull from day one,” said Hamilton, who is already 83 points behind Verstappen in the standings.
“I am working as hard as I can with this team and I see so much strength with the team. They are still so hungry.
“These guys will take two seconds to enjoy themselves on Sunday and then they will be back in the books trying to figure out how we can win the next race and that is what I love about them.”
Lando Norris upset by Lewis Hamilton prang but accepts it was ‘racing incident’
Lando Norris wanted to turn the air blue following his accident with Lewis Hamilton at the Spanish Grand Prix – but stressed his compatriot did not do anything wrong.
Norris started third after a fine performance in qualifying, but his race was over inside two corners when he drove into the back of Hamilton’s Mercedes.
Norris was forced to pit for a new front wing, relegating him to the back of the field. The 23-year-old Briton eventually took the chequered flag in 17th place. Hamilton continued without damage, finishing runner-up to Max Verstappen.
Asked what went through his mind following his first-lap prang, Norris said: “F***. Max [Verstappen] went off the track and a bit wide, so he had to bounce over the kerb at Turn 2. Everybody checked up and I was too close to Lewis to react and brake so it was just unlucky in my opinion, and a racing incident.
“Lewis didn’t do anything wrong. I touched his wheel, nothing happened to him, maybe it made him quicker today.”
Following a brief resurgence, McLaren are on something of a downward spiral. Norris has scored only a dozen points from the opening seven rounds, leaving him 11th in the standings.
And the highly-rated Briton, who is under contract with McLaren until the end of 2025, painted a gloomy picture for the remainder of the campaign.
“The pace was as expected as it was today which was bad,” he said. “I don’t think we expected anything else.
“We were slow and we have been all year. Yesterday was a special day. Some of the good teams struggled and some of the worst teams did a better job. People made mistakes and we capitalised on that.
“But we are clearly nowhere near as quick as the top-five teams so there is no point thinking about finishing in the points because we are not quick enough.
“There are no new parts on the car. We had a upgrade in Baku and that was about it. It maybe brought us half-a-tenth to a tenth.
“A lot of teams have brought upgrades to the last few races and we haven’t. We are not expecting anything more than we are doing and if we get in the points it is an amazing day but the expectation is that we won’t.”
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