Vasseur says Red Bull scandal could be bigger than cheating

Red Bull may be facing allegations of something more serious than just cheating in the ongoing 'T-tray' controversy at the US Grand Prix, according to Ferrari team boss Frederic Vasseur.

Vasseur waded into the technical scandal that McLaren, Red Bull's title rival, has been pushing the hardest.

Before sprint qualifying in Austin, Red Bull mechanics demonstrated to FIA officials how their unique ride-height adjustment system works, claiming it requires special tools and cannot in fact be altered in parc ferme.

"If they really modified the car in parc ferme, it would be more than cheating," Vasseur told Sky Italia. "It would be huge.

"But I don't know the details. The FIA will do its job."

Red Bull has denied making any illegal setup changes during parc ferme, explaining that the device is not something that can be secretly used in real-time between sessions.

"When you hear these cleverly worded comments like 'You can't use it when the car is assembled', well, I know the cars are not always assembled," said McLaren CEO Zak Brown on Friday.

"And why should the FIA seal something if it's not accessible?" he questioned.

Brown is urging the FIA to investigate how long Red Bull has been using the system and whether it has ever been tampered with during parc ferme conditions.

Meanwhile, Red Bull has hinted that McLaren's aggressive stance may be retaliation for their own 'mini-DRS' rear wing being banned recently.

Indeed, McLaren admitted that all of its rear wing designs—beyond just the one used in Baku—had to be adjusted following that technical controversy.

As for Red Bull's offending T-tray or 'bib' system, the team says it can't fully remove it from the car until the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Dr. Helmut Marko maintains that, "The system is completely legal and was known to all the teams and the FIA. I think that says enough.

"You cannot change the ride height between qualifying and the race, and we have not," Marko told Sky Deutschland. "I don't understand all the talk about this.

"Maybe someone wants to distract attention from other problems," he added.

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