Racing Point and Haas have settled their prize money case as they don’t reveal the outcome, while Otmar Szafnauer adds that regulation changes won’t affect RP21 work.
The case goes back to 2018 F1 season when Force India became Racing Point after it went under administration and Dr. Vijay Mallya lost the ownership. Lawrence Stroll and his consortium were chosen as the new co-owners to take the team forward.
Considering the circumstances, the FIA noted that Racing Point were a new F1 team as opposed to taking the reigns of an older outfit. All of its records would be brand new, while fans still relate it to its Jordan days and subsequent Force India time.
Haas raised the point of the prize money the team were to get on the basis of the 2017 result. They argued that Racing Point shouldn’t be entitled to that as they are a brand new entity as the case was registered then, which seems to have settled down now.
Both Szafnauer and Guenther Steiner confirmed the same but interestingly, they divulged no details about it. We’re pleased that it’s come to a conclusion and we can now, the entire team, can focus on what we’re here to do, which is go racing and entertain the fans.
“We’re happy that it’s behind us,” said Szafnauer. Meanwhile, Steiner simply added: “No, nothing to add. What Otmar said is right. We move on.” This settlement is another in recent F1 history to have no details out for the public to know.
Last year, Ferrari did the same with the FIA with their engine usage, citing IP as the reason. Also, this year, Racing Point along with Renault and Ferrari pulled out of the brake duct saga, noting a settlement reached out of the court via stricter regulations.
Again, the details of it remains secret. The FIA, though, has affirmed that they will have rules in place to disallow such happenings. Speaking on the very regulation change, when asked if it will affect the development of RP21, Szafnauer was calm about it.
Even though there are no big changes from 2020 to 2021, they still have two tokens to use. “We welcome the clarity in the rules,” said Szafnauer. “We will follows the rules. It won’t have an impact on how we go about designing and developing our car in the future.
“We’ve got 500 people in Silverstone who are very capable at designing and producing and good racing car, as well as developing its performance. We’ve always had that, we’ve always had that infrastructure from the time it was Jordan.
“What we lacked in the past was really manufacturing capacity. What we had in race car development was always strong. I think the new rules, although they make things more clear, will have zero impact on how we develop our car.”
Here’s F1 2020 stats and information so far: https://formularapida.net/f1-key-statistics-and-information-from-2020-season-so-far/
Here’s F1 drivers talking about if two-stops get mandated
Here’s vote on which driver impressed so far, including Racing Point and Haas drivers
Here’s Guenther Steiner, Otmar Szafnauer on two-day Imola weekend
Here’s Racing Point on new commercial hiring
Here’s Haas trio on red flag re-start, alternating tracks
