For FIA chief Nikolas Tombazis, the debate surrounding Red Bull’s bib is now truly over. According to the FIA director, the whole affair was a storm in a teacup. The governing body has no indication that Red Bull, or any other team, violated the parc fermé rules.
The story that has been occupying minds in Austin all weekend: the bib on the RB20. The Red Bull car has a function that allows the ride height to be adjusted from the cockpit under parc fermé rules. The FIA investigated the bib immediately after the first free practice in Austin, and has come to a conclusion.
FIA chief Nikolas Tombazis refers to Red Bull’s controversial adjustable ride height as a ‘non-story‘. “During the previous race, we were alerted that certain designs could allow a change in the height at the front of the car, also known as a bib, in parc fermé,” Tombazis tells Sky Sports. “We had no indication or evidence that anyone was doing such a thing, which would clearly be illegal according to the parc fermé rules.”
Under Control
Despite there being no indication at the FIA that a team had violated the parc fermé rules, the governing body decided to take action. “We said that from this race (Austin) there should be no possibility to do such a thing. So if a team had a design that would allow a quick change of that height, it should be sealed. So they can’t access it in parc fermé,” says the FIA director. “All teams have complied with this and as far as we are concerned, it is under control.”
