Mika Salo has hit reverse gear after revealing details of Ferrari's secret engine legality agreement with the FIA.

The former Ferrari driver and current FIA steward raised eyebrows this week by suggesting that Ferrari's customers had to use less fuel than their rivals last year as punishment for the affair.

"I don't know if they will have a new engine for 2021, but Alfa Romeo will at least now get all of the power in order to use their full potential. They were not allowed to last year because of Ferrari," he had been quoted as saying.

Salo says his widely-reported words were "misunderstood".

"What I said in an interview a couple of days ago has been misunderstood," he is now quoted by the Finnish broadcaster MTV.

"I would like to clarify that I am not aware of the (details of the) agreement between the FIA and Ferrari. We only talked about what has already been in the media.

"It was a stupid joke and just a conversation between two guys," Salo insisted.

"All I can say is that I have no idea what any of the agreements are. And even if I did know something, I wouldn't talk about it out like that," he added.