Red Bull hurt by F1 2024 rules update after Max Verstappen's success

26 October 2023 , 17:52

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Max Verstappen's success means an eye-watering bill for Red Bull (Image: AP)

Red Bull are set to fork out a record Formula 1 entry fee next season for the chance to defend the titles they have already secured.

So dominant have the champions been this year that the constructors' championship was wrapped up at last month's Japanese Grand Prix. And Max Verstappen made sure of his third drivers' crown two weeks later in Qatar.

And the team is on course to smash the record for the most points gained in a single season. They came very close to bettering Mercedes' total from 2016 last year, falling just six points short of that record of 765.

With four full race weekends to go in 2023, Red Bull currently sit on 706. And one final Sprint event in Brazil means another 15 points could potentially be gained on top of those paid out for the results of those Grands Prix as usual.

Regardless of whether or not that record is broken, what is for sure is that Red Bull will be forking out a huge entry fee for the 2024 season. The latest version of the sporting regulations for next season reveals a rise in the amount all teams will have to pay.

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All 10 entrants pay a flat fee, which then increases based on the number of points scored in the previous season. The base rate was £509,647 per team in 2023, which is set for a six-and-a-half percent rise for next term, meaning all entrants will pay £542,774 each as a minimum.

Last year, the champions had to pay £6,114 per point scored in the previous campaign on top of that, while everyone else's per-point fee was slightly lower at £5,094. It meant Red Bull, as champions and having scored 759 points in 2022, had to pay a huge £5,150,173 just to enter this year.

The entry fees rise this year means the champions will pay £6,512 per point gained in 2023, while everyone else will have to fork out £5,425. Even if Red Bull did not score another point between now and the end of this season, their 2024 entry fee already stands at a total of £5,140,246.

So just two more points will see them pass their previous record entry fee. And the amount they will have to shell out is already double that of their nearest competitors, with both Mercedes and Ferrari both currently having bills under £2.5m.

There is a maximum of 191 more points up for grabs for Red Bull across the final four race weekends, if Verstappen and Sergio Perez were to finish first and second in every race, including the Brazil Sprint, and set the fastest lap in all four Grands Prix. So there is the potential for up to £1,243,792 extra being added to their 2024 entry fee on top of the total they are already obliged to fork out.

Daniel Moxon