- Red Bull has informed the FIA of their suspicions towards title rival McLaren
- Lando Norris is 44 points behind Max Verstappen in the Drivers’ Championship
- McLaren currently leads the Drivers’ Championship with just four races remaining
Red Bull accuses McLaren of illegally injecting water into their tires to cool them on the eve of the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The manufacturer believes the water – or some other unspecified substance – was introduced through a valve. The coolant would then help protect against degradation and thus provide better race pace.
Suspicions arose in Singapore when, as the accusation goes, a jet of water flew from the rims of the tires after the race.
Red Bull has alerted the FIA to their suspicions. The board will be extra alert to this from now on.
McLaren has denied the allegations. And spokesperson for tire supplier Pirelli said if they found anything suspicious they would have informed the FIA.
Red Bull believes McLaren illegally injected water into their tires to cool them. In the photo: Red Bull team boss Christian Horner (left) Lambiase Gianpiero, racing engineer of Max Verstappen
McLaren has denied the allegations, while a Pirelli spokesperson insisted they would have informed the FIA if they had found anything suspicious
Using water or another substance to cool tires shortly before they are put on their map in the race can help limit thermal degradation and help drivers set a better pace, especially in the closing stages of the Grand Prix .
The FIA has issued a technical directive banning the practice, which a number of teams, including Red Bull, have adopted in the past several years ago. They now suspect their rivals are doing the same and believe this could explain their performance advantage.
The accusation is the result of an increasingly tense battle for the drivers’ title between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, which will be decided here and in three final races in Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.