FIA extends gearbox tender application deadline

The FIA has extended the deadline for tenders from companies interested in being the sole gearbox supplier to Formula 1 from 2021. 

This would mean that one company would be supplying identical gearboxes to the whole grid for 4 seasons from 2021. 

The deadline for applications was originally set as 15th March but this has been extended until 19th March. The FIA explained the reasons behind the extension saying it is in order to encourage the submission of bids. 

There is speculation that Charlie Whiting would have been part of the decision-making process and that his unexpected death was one of the reasons behind the FIA extending the deadline. 

The idea of having a single supplier of identical gearboxes has not been embraced by all the teams.

Andrew Green, the technical director of Racing Point is not convinced by the idea: "It would affect our business model if it comes true. I'm a bit sceptical about its ability to save money. It's not going to save us any money, that's for sure." 

He added: "It does seem a bit strange that all the teams are going to be supplied by a single supplier in an area that's absolutely critical to the running of the car. Let's see how it pans out, we've only seen a tender go out, we don't know what's going to happen after that."

The new technical director for Toro Rosso Jody Egginton was more upbeat about the idea and described gearboxes as basically the same except for the packaging.

He did say that that the clever part of the gearboxes is how they are packaged. He says that seeing if you can find any aerodynamic advantages or opportunities from them is the real challenge but finished with: "Honestly if it's pitched correctly, I personally don't see massive issues with having standardised parts."