F1 News
Former director Mekies explains there's 'nothing new' with FIA bib checks
Following yesterday's one and only free practice session, footage was broadcasted on Sky Sports about a Red Bull engineer showing their car to FIA officials. A former director of the organisation for several years and current VCARB team principal, Laurent Mekies explained why he agrees with Zak Brown about trusting the federation.
"I was at the FIA. And therefore, I fully trust the FIA. Seriously, there is many, many things you cannot trust in a race car," the Frenchman began on Friday. Mekies was first a safety director, and then became a deputy race director before joining Ferrari.
He continued: "The Parc Fermé is not exactly a new rule. It's been there for 15 years. So for 15 years, the FIA had to watch if we were not adjusting stuff that we could mechanically adjust during that time from qualifying to the race. so there is nothing new there. So I don't think it's a new additional stress. You can change your front ride height or your rear ride height or your anti-roll bar or your damper settings probably with a click or a spanner. But the FIA make sure that you don't do that."
'Nothing new here'
According to Mekies, the federation have the equipment to prevent modifying the car. Previously, Sky Sports pundit Ted Kravitz has also declared he does not believe Red Bull could modify their ride height with their system, given that the FIA could easily see that on their cameras.
"We have cameras and we have the marshals with us in our garage around the car during the whole time in which we are in the garage between the end of the qualifying to the start of the race," Mekies continued. "So I don't think it's a new concern. I think the FIA has to ensure that we don't touch at all any of the car specifications or settings and I don't think there is anything new here."
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