The danger of the “B” teams according to Andreas Seidl

With the regulatory changes that Formula 1 underwent in 2022, some teams from the back of the grid have found themselves in a strong position this year, notably Alfa Romeo and Haas. These two teams, who faced significant challenges in 2021 and accumulated few or no points, are now capable of scoring in every Grand Prix, thanks in particular to a powerful Ferrari engine.

On the other hand, McLaren, Aston Martin, and Williams find themselves in difficulty, just like their engine supplier, Mercedes. Apart from the use of the German engine, McLaren does not have any particular link with another team, as is the case between Red Bull and AlphaTauri. According to him, this poses a problem: « There are two issues: first of all, it allows the B teams to outperform. But what is even more concerning is that the A team takes advantage of it. And obviously, this is worrisome, considering the ambition we have as a team. I still hope that we will find solutions because our goal is not to have a second team. I hope that F1 will never find itself in a position where it requires having a B team to compete at the front. »

Seidl asserts that his comments are not influenced by Haas’s current performance, which, despite being point-less in 2021, has already scored 15 points this year. And once again, our stance has not changed, and has nothing to do with the teams’ current sporting performances. We just want to make that clear. Haas deserves all the results they are achieving at the moment because there are regulations in place, and if they fulfill them, there is nothing to complain about.

According to the German engineer, sharing parts between teams should not be allowed for intellectual property reasons. This includes engines, gearboxes, and aerodynamic components. This obviously brings to mind the Red Bull and AlphaTauri association, as well as Haas and Ferrari in 2018. The question of car copying also arises, such as Racing Point and Mercedes in 2020, or this year between Aston Martin and Red Bull. The sharing of infrastructure is also a practice that Seidl disapproves of. « Things like the sharing of infrastructure should be prohibited because there are many elements that cannot be properly controlled ».

That being said, currently only the French Alpine team is completely independent, and in an era of cost reduction, forcing customer teams from other engine suppliers to develop their own power units would go against the commitments of the FIA.