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Otmar Szafnauer (Source: Twitter/X)
The introduction of spending limits on Formula 1 teams was aimed at avoiding the inequality between the teams. However, the ongoing season has witnessed some interesting splits among the competitors. The best five teams, Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren, Aston Martin, and Mercedes, seem to be way ahead of the other teams. This means they often take all the top positions where they get points.
All teams have to spend the same amount of money because of the cost cap rules. But some people wonder why these top teams are doing so well. The former boss of Alpine and Aston Martin, Otmar Szafnauer, believes that the cost cap rules have something to do with it.
He thinks some teams have figured out how to use the cost cap rules to their advantage. Also, the older teams have some benefits from the past that help them stay ahead. In a media interview, he said, “There's a couple of areas I can think of.”
“One, which I experienced, is there are some teams that have done a better job at cost cap structure. They can spend $10-15 million more than some others, and you have to remember this is at the margin of performance. Say that $15 million more that you've got, because of the way you organised yourself, you can buy more talent, or you can do other experiments that the other guys cannot do”, he further added.
Szafnauer explains the reasons
Szafnauer explained that certain important car features depend on teams having enough money left within the spending limit to get the best results. He further said, “I'll give you an example. Some of the teams run transparent floors, So you can see the flow, while others don't. They bought that stuff before.”
“As a small example, when I was talking to my aerodynamicists at Alpine, they said: We need a transparent floor, so I can see what's going on. Others have it! “Toto Wolff is always saying it, but the best drivers want to be in the best teams. So that adds a little bit too, as you still have the best drivers in the best teams.”