Mercedes GP boss Norbert Haug says his team is within RRA limitations – Formula 1 news
Mercedes GP boss Norbert Haug has denied accusations that were recently imposed on his team with regards to the Resource Restriction Agreement.
He said this ahead of the meeting that is scheduled for Sunday, October 16, 2011 at the 2011 Korean Grand Prix this weekend, to clarify issues surrounding the budgetary limit.
Haug confirmed that the team has and will be been spending within the limits specified by the RRA and that any allegation pointing to the team breaching the agreement is totally baseless. Having cleared his position, he mentioned that there are a few teams
that have not been following the RRA in letter and spirit, without disclosing any names.
The Resource Restriction Agreement which was signed in to Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) calls for an upper cap on all financial activities of teams, and in case any team is found breaking the agreement, it will be penalised.
Haug said, “We don't know if all people are acting in the same way, but we are 100% RRA and, especially with Ross [Brawn], we were one of the prime movers for that concept, and really are living with it. This is the basis for Mercedes Benz for the future.
We want to have decent limits and not spending money unnecessarily.”
It was during the Japanese Grand Prix of last week that Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali raised this issue and called for a clarification and clearing up of doubts surrounding the RRA. He felt that all teams need to follow and abide by this agreement and
over-spending should be strictly dealt with so that economic advantage does not become a decisive factor in team’s performance.
Domenicali said, “It should not become a performance differentiator so that you are able to do something that some others are not able to do.”
Earlier, McLaren-Mercedes managing director Jonathan Neale stated that it is very important for all the Formula 1 teams to remain united and develop trust, rather than looking at each other’s activities with a sceptical eye.
The teams’ bosses will be meeting in Korea to discuss the spending woes related to RRA alongside other issues of common interest.
Let’s see what the outcome of the meeting is and how it affects the next Concorde Agreement that is due to take place soon.
Tags: