Horner wants 2021 F1 rules deadline pushed to December

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner believes pushing back the 2021 Formula 1 technical rules confirmation from June to December would suit all teams and take the pressure off a tight deadline.

Following the F1 2021 meetings with Liberty Media chiefs in London the week before the Bahrain Grand Prix, key issues were discussed including revenue distribution between teams, a potential cost cap and 2021 rule changes.

The current FIA deadline marks the end of June as when the 2021 rules must be confirmed to give teams sufficient time, 18 months, to prepare for the rules overhaul.

Horner has shot down the prospect of meeting the current June deadline but believes a possible delay until December could be beneficial to all F1 teams.

“There is an energy driving things forward at the moment and it is about time. Hopefully during the next few weeks we can get results,” Horner told Sky Sports F1.

“It will be this year but there are so many factors to tidy up like income, costs, technical regulations.

“I actually think the technical regulations being released too soon is going to cost more money anyway so perhaps at the end of the year would be a better time to release the technical regulations.

“Otherwise some teams would basically stockpile, bring resources in and specialist teams on these new regulations so I think it coming out later would be better.

“As long as it is by December, I think that would be fine, then it is not too late for the little teams and not too late for the big teams.”

Under the current FIA Sporting Code, regulations for 2021 in F1 need to be officially confirmed by June 30, assuming “substantial impact on technical design and/or balance of performance” is created by key rule changes.