FIA engine clampdown ’no surprise’ - Renault

Renault says it is "not surprised" the FIA is clamping down on supposedly non-performance engine upgrades in formula one.

As the mid-year month of June approaches, it is believed Honda - for example - has found 50 horse power since Melbourne without spending a single ’token’.

Amid the so-called ’engine freeze’, the FIA’s token system gives manufacturers some limited scope to improve the performance of their power units during the season.

But many changes, ostensibly for reliability reasons, can be done without exchanging tokens.

Honda is not alone. Mercedes, Ferrari and Renault also have not used a single token between them so far during the grand prix season, Italy’s Omnicorse reports.

So over the Monaco weekend, the FIA issued a directive warning that any modifications to the engines from now on can only be made with 8 days notice, and accompanied by reams of explanatory data.

"I’m not surprised," Renault’s F1 chief, Cyril Abiteboul, said.

"Like last year, there were about 50 requests for modifying the engines put forward by the manufacturers.

"It must not be easy to manage all of these requests so I am not surprised if the FIA wants to have more control over the situation," the Frenchman added.