Christian Horner calls out F1 rivals’ “paranoia” over Red Bull ‘bib’ saga

Christian Horner has insisted Red Bull are “totally comfortable” with the FIA’s investigation into their controversial F1 ride height device.

The talk of the Austin paddock has been around a device on the Red Bull car that caught attention in Singapore.

A number of rival teams raised concerns that Red Bull were able to adjust the ride height of their car at the front under parc ferme, which would contravene F1’s rules, while giving a performance advantage.

Addressing the issue for the first time, Horner told Sky Sports that the FIA “are happy with it”.

"Every car has a tool that they can adjust the front of the bib,” Horner explained. Ours is located in front of the footwell and it has been there for over three years. You have got to get the pedals and other panels and pipework out in order to get to it, so it is like any other adjustment on the car. It would be easier to adjust a rear roll bar than it would be to get to that component. It is all part of the packaging in the front end of the chassis.

“I think there has been a bit of moaning from one of our rivals, and it is the FIA's job to look into these things. It is on a list of open-source components so it has been publicly available for the last three years. The FIA are happy with it, just to satisfy some paranoia elsewhere in the paddock.

“Sometimes, to perhaps distract from what is going on in your own house, sometimes you try to light a fire somewhere else. There was an awful lot of noise about rear wings... It is part of Formula 1 and I am sure there will be other things that come up between now and Abu Dhabi.”

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has called for “massive consequences” if the FIA’s investigation finds Red Bull guilty of using the device under parc ferme conditions.

However, Horner is adamant that Red Bull have done nothing wrong.

“It was actually a conversation we had with the FIA in Singapore,” he added. “The FIA have looked at it and they are more than happy with it. Totally happy with it.

“There’s probably 600 items on the car that are fully adjustable. Everybody can adjust these elements. What you can’t do is adjust them during parc ferme. That is what hasn’t happened. It would be easier to adjust a floor stake or a roll bar or a push rod length than strip out the pedals. We have cameras watching the cars. We have scrutineers and witnesses watching the cars. Our car has come under more scrutiny in the last three years than any other car in the pit lane. We’re totally comfortable.

“We can seal every moveable joint on the car. Parc ferme dictates we can’t change anything. That is what parc ferme is there for. We’ve complied with all of the regulations and procedures. We’re more than happy with the discussions with the FIA and what’s been shown to them, they’re very comfortable with.”