May 30 (GMM) Red Bull had instructed Mark Webber to switch his engine to a fuel-saving mode in the moments before his crash with teammate Sebastian Vettel in Turkey.

In the aftermath of the controversial incident, rumours began to swirl inside the Istanbul Park paddock that there was more to it than met the eye.

Australian Webber alluded to the intrigue by telling reporters after the race that Vettel had a "big top speed advantage" when he launched the move.

Pressed for whether there was a reason for the speed difference, Webber answered: "Hmm, maybe.

"You guys need to dig more, somewhere else."

The media therefore went to team bosses Christian Horner and Helmut Marko, who initially did not confirm that Webber and Vettel's engines were running on different settings.

"I think it was in the tyres," said advisor Marko, when asked specifically if there was a reason that Vettel was so much quicker than Webber at the time of the shunt.

Both Horner and Marko seemed to blame Webber for the crash, directly contradicting many experts within the paddock.

It is rumoured that, as the pair were on equal points at the head of the world championship at the time of the shunt, Red Bull wanted Vettel to pass Webber and win the race.

Marko denied that Webber's engineer had been instructed to tell the driver to let Vettel past.

"That is not correct," said the Austrian, "because that would mean a team order.

"We informed Mark about the situation and it is for the driver to decide. The fact is that if Sebastian hadn't passed he would have been overtaken by Hamilton."

Latest F1 News - Mobile version

26 Feb: New Ferrari not quickest in field - Domenicali 26 Feb: Red Bull still best in 2013 - Tost 26 Feb: 2014 French grand prix 'possible' - Prost 26 Feb: Danica Patrick 'not interested' in F1 switch 26 Feb: Report - Gilles Simon working on F1 engine for Honda 26 Feb: Gutierrez plays down link to Carlos Slim 26 Feb: Caterham exhaust 'legal' insists van der Garde 26 Feb: McLaren replaces Mercedes-bound Lowe 25 Feb: 'Engine maps' trouble for Red Bull, Lotus - report 25 Feb: Mercedes-bound Lowe to miss 2013 opener - report 25 Feb: Mercedes 'in group of teams' behind Red Bull - Lauda 25 Feb: Gutierrez expects Hulkenberg to beat him early in 2013 25 Feb: New Ferrari 'much better' than 2012 - Massa 25 Feb: Teams 'will adapt' to new tyre situation - Gutierrez 25 Feb: Tight rules make today's F1 cars 'the same' - Forghieri 25 Feb: Williams removes controversial exhaust trick 25 Feb: Contract 'conflicts' cause of Marussia test snub - Razia 25 Feb: Lotus to fight Red Bull for title - Gutierrez 25 Feb: Marussia 'ahead of Caterham' - Chilton 25 Feb: Sutil will not stay in F1 as test driver The latest F1 News - Mobile Version