Jul.4 (GMM) Red Bull’s dispute with the FIA over the controversial ADUO engine compensation system is set to intensify with a high-level meeting at Silverstone.
According to De Telegraaf, FIA officials will meet Red Bull’s senior leadership this weekend to explain why the governing body concluded the team’s internal combustion engine is the strongest on the grid, leaving it ineligible for ADUO development concessions.
The report said FIA staff spent eight days reviewing Red Bull’s evidence but ultimately did not change their assessment.
CEO Oliver Mintzlaff and co-owner Mark Mateschitz are expected to attend the initial meeting, with a second discussion involving team principal Laurent Mekies scheduled next week.
The report also suggested some figures in the paddock believe Red Bull was less effective politically than rivals in preparing for the ADUO process, noting that Christian Horner and Dr Helmut Marko – now both absent – had previously been particularly influential behind the scenes.
Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur admitted he, too, was surprised by the FIA’s initial rankings.
“Of course I was,” he told Corriere della Sera when asked about Mercedes qualifying for ADUO assistance despite winning seven of the opening eight races.
“It wasn’t the picture we thought we had.
“However, the system isn’t based on results but on the calculation of the internal combustion engine’s power output, and we didn’t have access to all the data the FIA can use to measure those parameters.
“So yes, we were surprised,” Vasseur added. “Only Red Bull was more surprised than we were.”
The controversy centres on the fact that ADUO eligibility is determined solely by combustion engine performance, not the complete power unit, meaning Mercedes qualified despite widespread belief in the paddock that it already holds the strongest overall package because of its electrical systems.
