Ferrari's power surge is 'strange', but is it legal?

Ferrari's recent surge in power has left teams up and down the grid scratching their heads and asking questions, but the FIA are certain that the Scuderia's advantage has not been ill-gotten. FIA race director Charlies Whiting says the governing body remains "entirely satisfied" that Ferrari are not breaking any rules.

In what has widely been reported to be a breakthrough in how they harvest electrical power, Ferrari - and their customer teams Sauber and Haas - are now in possession of the strongest power unit in Formula 1, ending Mercedes' long-held advantage in the power stakes.

Although Sebastian Vettel's crash at Hockenheim saw Ferrari lose top spot in the drivers' and constructors' standings, they will head to the Hungarian Grand Prix this week as favourites, with Vettel having won at the Hungaroring last year.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said the Silver Arrows could only "trust" that Ferrari's PU meets regulation, but Whting says there is no need to be alarmed.

"We are entirely satisfied with everything on that front, as we said in Monaco," said Whiting.

"Some teams have been asking further questions and we were just there to try and help them have some peace, if you like."

Another team principal concerned is Renault's Cyril Abiteboul. Having already lost Red Bull as customers for 2019, his recent admission that the French marque could not keep pace with Ferrari's rate of development will also worry McLaren.

"Clearly we are scratching our heads, because we look in particular at the GPS profile, and we see indeed that it's really strange what they are doing," Abiteboul told Motorsport.

"But doing something strange doesn't mean that it's illegal. I think we must give credit to what they have done, and that should be an extra commitment to work harder, and try and do the same step on our side."