Red Bull rejects collusion allegations over fastest lap at Singapore GP
Red Bull Racing/Red Bull Content Pool
SINGAPORE -- Red Bull Racing's team principal, Christian Horner, has staunchly denied allegations of coordination between Red Bull Racing and RB (also known as VCARB) after Daniel Ricciardo deprived Lando Norris of the point for the fastest lap in the Singapore Grand Prix.
Lando Norris closed the points gap to Max Verstappen to 52 points with his victory on Sunday. However, the gap could have been reduced to 51 points had he secured the bonus point for the fastest lap. Norris held the fastest lap for much of the race until Ricciardo, running at the back of the grid, pitted for fresh tyres ahead of the penultimate lap and set a new fastest time.
The bonus point for the fastest lap is only awarded to a driver finishing inside the top 10, which Ricciardo did not accomplish. Despite not earning the bonus point themselves, Ricciardo's lap denied Norris the coveted extra point. Given that both Red Bull Racing and RB are owned by the parent company Red Bull, suggestions arose that the two teams may have colluded to aid Verstappen's championship bid.
Horner, however, maintains that no coordination took place. "Daniel obviously wanted to finish the race on a high," he stated. "You'd have to ask VCARB about that."
There is speculation that this may have been Ricciardo's last race in Formula 1 as RB contemplates replacing him with reserve driver Liam Lawson in the upcoming Austin, Texas, race. Addressing these rumors, RB's team principal Laurent Mekies explained their motivation. "Given this may have been Daniel's last race, we wanted to give him the chance to savour it and go out with the fastest lap," Mekies commented.
McLaren's team principal, Andrea Stella, expressed his astonishment at Ricciardo's fastest lap. "I did not see it coming," Stella said. "I was a little surprised that the highest priority of racing in Singapore was to go and score the fastest lap."
Stella also underscored his respect and admiration for Ricciardo, adding, "I have so much sympathy, support, and friendship with Daniel that I'm just happy that he may add this fastest lap to his track record."
When the implications for sportsmanship were raised, Stella signaled his concern while refraining from making explicit accusations. "Look, that is a big matter. As soon as you invoke the sportsmanship, I think you need to approach this with a sense of responsibility that I want to have," Stella noted.
"I don't know the facts. I just saw that Racing Bulls went for the fastest lap and they achieved it. For me to talk about sportsmanship and so on, I think it would be out of place. We need to ensure that teams act in a totally autonomous manner because this is a constructors' championship, a drivers' championship," he concluded.
This incident has now sparked discussions about the autonomy and sportsmanship of teams within the Formula 1 community, calling for deeper introspection into the values and regulations guiding the sport.
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