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McLaren won't appeal

McLaren won't appeal last Thursday's World Motor Sport Council verdict, according to team boss Ron Dennis. Last week McLaren were stripped of all their Constructors' Championship points for the season and handed a $100m fine by the WMSC after being found guilty of using Ferrari secrets in this year's Championship. McLaren had until Friday 5pm (CET) to appeal the verdict but announced at the 11th hour that they would accept the punishment, although still protested their innocence. 'Having now had time to study the judgement of the World Motor Sport Council with its lawyers and shareholders, McLaren thinks it is in the best interests of the sport, and its goal of winning races and World Championships, not to appeal,' the team said in a statement. 'It is clear from the full judgement that the World Motor Sport Council concluded that the charge that a McLaren employee had "unauthorised possession of documents and confidential information" was proven. 'Despite the existence of no evidence that the information was applied, tested or shared with the engineering team (which it was not), this possession constitutes a breach of the Code. 'To our regret and embarrassment, the content of the previously unknown emails demonstrated possession not being limited to a single person, albeit unsanctioned in any way by the team. For this breach of Article 151c, a very heavy penalty has been imposed on the team. 'The major principle of the issue for McLaren is: this information was not used to gain advantage on its cars. 'Moving forwards, and in consultation with our shareholders, we will now review and further strengthen our internal compliance structures and processes.' Team boss Ron Dennis, who has borne the brunt of McLaren's Stepneygate woes, is keen to put the matter behind him and move on as his drivers challenge for the 2007 Drivers' Championship title. "We believe the time has come to put this huge distraction behind us. McLaren wants to win races and World Championships," he said. "We are fortunate to have, and continue to receive, unwavering support from our employees, sponsor partners and Formula 1 fans across the world - all of whom are equally keen that we totally focus on winning this year's Drivers' Championship and the remaining three races of the season."

It's official then: