The end of the 2021 season was filled with the debate around who had won and who should have. That was justified. But who would’ve thought that in September 2022, we would still be questioning Red Bull taking home the title?

F1 teams are required to maintain their spending under certain budget caps since the 2021 season. Spending limits were brought in to make F1 more financially sustainable and bring the grid closer together. Previous seasons saw some of the big teams spend upwards of $200 million.

Rumors now say that Red Bull was in violation of the spending limit for 2021 when they won the Championship in a controversial manner.

Andrew Haupt, reporting for auto motor und sport, said “Figures are circulating in the paddock that Red Bull could have exceeded 10 million dollars. That would be a capital offence. (Translated via Google)”

“That amount could employ 100 engineers for $100,000. That would inevitably increase the output of the development department. Ten million…many teams don’t even have that much budget for mid-season upgrades.”

Haupt believes that if proven correct, these allegations could “cause an earthquake” as other teams feel cheated for having complied.

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Other teams have also had their say on the matter.

Talking to SkySports, Toto Wolff said, “All of us have been investigated diligently and, as far as we understand, there is a team is in minor breach [Aston Martin], which is more procedural, and another team that is fundamentally massively over [Red Bull Racing] and that is still being looked after. That is an open secret in the paddock.”

As investigations into the matter remain underway, it brings the obvious question – what will the consequences be for Red Bull and Max Verstappen if they are found guilty?

What are the potential ramifications for Red Bull amid cost cap breach rumors?

The FIA released varying spending limits when they announced the new caps. $145 million was the cap for 2021, while $140 million was the cap for the 2022.

Christian Horner continues to call it “an underhand tactic”, the consequences of such a violation will not be small.

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A breach of less than 5% is considered minor. Possible penalties include a deduction of points from the Drivers Championship and Constructors Championship; suspension for some races, among others.

A major or material breach could, on the other hand, attract dedication of points and complete exclusion from either championship. It might also attract a reduction of the spending limit for the team in future seasons.

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As we approach a thrilling night at Marina Bay, the budget cap controversy will continue hanging over Horner like Damocles’ sword. This is a controversy they would not have wanted to deal with going into an important weekend like this.