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A report in the German media suggests that engine supplier Honda recently received a technical guidance from the FIA, which has not been shared with the public. This would be some employees of Mercedes have informed. According to them, this would explain why Mercedes was once again supreme in Hungary.
Currently, the engine manufacturers are no longer allowed to make ‘performance updates’. The power sources may only be tinkered with if there are updates in the field of safety or durability. From 2022, the engine regulations will be completely frozen, from that moment on nothing can be changed. Honda introduced its second engine of the season on the weekend of the French Grand Prix, slightly later than the competition. The Japanese motorcycle manufacturer had made a number of changes to improve reliability, but also seemed to have gained some performance.
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Red Bull had a clear advantage over the competition during the races at Paul Ricard in France and the Red Bull Ring in Austria. This also had to do with the fact that Red Bull used less downforce, so they won a few tenths. This, of course, immediately raised doubts for the Mercedes team, which noticed that Honda suddenly had much more top speed than before.
Technical directive?
At Silverstone and Hungary, however, this advantage seemed to have disappeared like snow in the sun and Mercedes suddenly dominated qualifying again. The German Car, motor and sport reports that this could be related to a technical directive sent to Honda privately by the FIA. According to BOORISHNESS Several sources within Mercedes report that Honda has been delayed by a directive targeting how the Honda power unit uses energy management. As the FIA does not openly communicate such guidelines, it remains to be seen whether this is actually the case.
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