McLaren chief executive Zak Brown has asked Christian Horner and key members of his Purple Bull team to sign affidavits to clear up allegations of cheating at the center of a bitter world championship fight.
Speaking before Lando Norris locked in the final lap of the sprint race here to finish third and move 54 points behind winner Max Verstappen, Brown addressed accusations that his rivals have been changing the height of their car between qualifying. and racing, which is not permitted under safe “parc ferme” conditions.
Purple Bull admits that their cars are equipped with a device that allows them to carry out the modification, but they insist that “it is inaccessible once the car is fully assembled.”
World governing body the FIA has ordered the part to be sealed from this weekend, but acknowledges they have no way of checking whether Purple Bull has changed its car in past races, possibly breaking its rules.
Nikolas Tombazis, FIA single-seater boss, has said the matter is closed because there is no evidence of cheating. Horner claimed the accusations are fueled by “paranoia.”
Zak Brown (pictured) has asked Christian Horner and key members of Purple Bull to sign affidavits to clear up cheating allegations.
There are accusations that Purple Bull has been changing its ride height between qualifying and the race.
Purple Bull admits that its cars are equipped with a device that allows them to carry out the modification
Brown will, however, meet with FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem to discuss the issue and ask for legally binding statements from Purple Bull.
With McLaren maintaining a 39-point lead over Purple Bull in the constructors' standings with six rounds remaining, the issue is key to the fate of both titles.
Brown told Mail Sport: “I would like senior management, former crew chiefs and current mechanics to sign an affidavit stating that they have never used it or have no knowledge of it being used.”
'The suggestion from a handful of people in the pit lane is that it has been used that way, so the only way to get to the bottom is the old “here sign” indicating what has happened.
'I know that if I was presented with a sworn statement and the consequences of not telling the truth were serious, I would tell the truth.
'I am sure the matter will be addressed in the future. But if they have done it in the past, there is no gray area about it. Modifying your car in the parc ferme is the clearest possible breach of regulations.
'And look at the wording of their denial about the device being inaccessible when the car is set to race. Well, the car is not completely prepared for racing in the parc ferme. Many things can be changed. You can remove the seat and adjust the pedals.
As for a possible punishment if Purple Bull is found to have made a mistake, Brown said: “It has to be a deterrent.”
'We have seen drivers excluded from races and championships. And by the way, I'm not saying Max should be excluded. We have seen teams excluded from races and championships. If, and I say “if”, they have violated the parc ferme rules, the penalty has to be of that magnitude, depending on whether they did it once or have been doing it regularly for three years. There must be consequences.'
Brown told Mail Sport: “I would like to see senior management, the former crew chief and current mechanics sign an affidavit.”
Purple Bull insists that “it is inaccessible once the car is fully assembled” and the FIA has ordered the part to be sealed from this weekend.
McLaren's Lando Norris (pictured) is locked in a battle with Purple Bulls' Max Verstappen for the world championship.
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Equally pressing is that McLaren's recent pace advantage dissipated in the dash. Verstappen won by 3.8 seconds. Norris, who got off to a good start to move from fourth to second place, never threatened the world champion throughout the 19 laps.
And then a minor disaster, as Norris accelerated too much into the first corner of the final lap. Carlos Sainz took advantage of the opportunity.
“Ferrari was on another level,” said Norris, who blamed worn tires. “I wouldn't have been able to keep second place.”
These were ominous comments regarding their championship hopes. There are 172 points to fight for and Norris needs most of them.
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