Stepneygate: McLaren stripped of all points, fined $100M

[RC45]

waaa waaa waaaa

We can only hope this bit of whining and crying is the beginning of the end of Formula 1.

The entire series and leadership needs to be cleansed.

F1 is currently the worst form of motor sport on the planet - this from someone who used to love F1 and would watch every race.

I would rather watch a 500 mile NASCAR race or a British Formula Ford league race than sit through one Formula 1 race. (and I dislike Formula Ford and NASCAR immensely)

Formula 1 should be remodeled after Australian V8 Supercars or some other exciting series. But this procession of primadonnas is mind numbing.

[nthfinity]

screw F1

Bring back Group C

[Mattk]

I agree with RC, partially. I don't think this spells the end of F1, because it evidently hasn't turned out to be that serious. But, I grew up on V8 Supercars back before it was even called that (I think it was the Australian Touring Car Championships, or something equally mundane), and it's definitely better than F1. At least there's more overtaking. F1 has become less about racing, and more about race strategy and technological development. I still like F1 a lot, and I obviously still follow it, but it has lost its lustre over the past few years. Nobody even cares about Mark Webber, here, anymore. Will Power in the ChampCar series gets more publicity.

[blue8]

I know that this issue has been very disappointing for people but just to keep you updated:
Letter of Ron Dennis to Max Mosley and Luigi Macaluso:
http://www.planet-f1.com/story/0,189...636745,00.html

Macaluso's response to Dennis
http://www.planet-f1.com/story/0,189...638316,00.html

Honestly though, I didn't read any of it One thing to point out is that Dennis claims that Stepney informed McLaren of the illegal floor device. Of course, Stepney denies it
This might go on even long after the season :roll:

[graywolf624]

Honestly though, I didn't read any of it One thing to point out is that Dennis claims that Stepney informed McLaren of the illegal floor device. Of course, Stepney denies it This might go on even long after the season

Even if he did thats still wrong.. You dont inform the competitor of an illegal device.. You inform the sanctioning body.
They were wrong, and theres no political excuses that change that.

[blue8]

Flavio Briatore wants McLaren excluded:

Renault boss Flavio Briatore has called for McLaren to be excluded from the Formula One world championship over their part in the spy scandal that has rocked the sport. McLaren have repeatedly denied that they gained any advantage from sacked Ferrari engineer Nigel Stepney providing them with 780 pages of confidential Ferrari information. Last week a World Motorsport Council hearing found it could not be proven that McLaren had benefited from the dossier leaked to them and consequently enforced no penalty on the British team. But speaking to Italian media here, Briatore criticised that decision and even suggested that McLaren had knowledge of Ferrari data earlier than March this year, the widely accepted start date of the 'Stepney affair'. Briatore points at McLaren's smooth transition from Michelin tyres to Bridgestone, a change that has caused his own team no end of trouble. "Last winter, I was saying how lucky McLaren are to be immediately that quick on Bridgestone tyres," Briatore said. "I'm a lucky guy, so it's okay for other people to be as well. We, on the other hand, were in full crisis mode: Michelin's retirement turned out to be a disaster for Renault. Cliquez ici... " "It's evident that they (McLaren) had the data on the weight distribution by Ferrari, who used Bridgestone tyres for almost ten years. That page in the famous stolen dossier would have been enough to save months of work and to find the solution immediately." Briatore considers Renault an 'injured party' in the spy case that he believes has tainted the 2007 season. "Yes, and not just for us and Ferrari, but for everyone else. Here is a team that acquired an advantage illegally," he added. The Italian was just as forthright when asked what sanctions should be taken against McLaren. "Just read the regulations: for intellectual property theft the punishment is exclusion," he advised. This week Ferrari has been granted an appeal against the World Motorsport Council ruling. Their case will be heard by the FIA Court of Appeal, most probably at the end of this month in Paris.

[blue8]

New Evidence:

The espionage saga involving McLaren and Ferrari took a fresh turn on Wednesday. F1's governing body revealed in a statement that it has received 'new evidence' and had therefore decided to convene another hearing of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris. The meeting will happen on September 13th, in the place of an appeal of the original July 26th decision to not penalise Ron Dennis' Woking based team for spying on its Italian rivals. "The FIA President's referral of the matter to the International Court of Appeal has been withdrawn," the FIA said in a statement on Wednesday. The governing body also said McLaren representatives had been invited to attend the new meeting, but made no mention of Ferrari. Due to 'insufficient evidence' in July, the World Motor Sport Council found Woking based McLaren guilty of breaching the International Sporting Code but could not prove that the confidential Ferrari data had been improperly used. The FIA also said in July that the team faced exclusion from the 2007 and 2008 championships if it is 'found in the future that the Ferrari information has been used. ' FIA Statement "Following the receipt of new evidence the World Motor Sport Council has been reconvened for a hearing in Paris on September 13th. "In accordance with its decision of July 26th representatives of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes have been invited to attend the hearing. "The FIA President’s referral of the matter to the International Court of Appeal has been withdrawn." McLaren Mercedes Statement "McLaren Racing has been made aware that new evidence has been presented to the FIA as part of their on-going investigation. "As a result we have been informed that the Court of Appeal Hearing scheduled for the 13th September in Paris will now comprise a meeting of the WMSC. "McLaren will continue to co-operate fully with the FIA."

[bmagni]

I just hope they're penalized... but I don't want the season to be boring because of that. I want Ferrari to beat them on track.

[bmagni]

According to Auto Motor und Sport, the new evidence is that Pedro de la Rosa informed Alstronzo via email about the possesion of the documents just after the season had begun. And that when the Alstronzo-McLaren relatios started to deteriorate he even thought to accuse McLaren with FIA so that he got his contract cancelled.
Serious allegations by the German mag

[blue8]

Formal request to drivers from Max Mosley FIA President Max Mosley has requested the McLaren drivers to come forward with any information they might have regarding the spy scandal investigation. Following its release to the media, we have reproduced his letter below. 31 August 2007 Dear Mr De La Rosa As you will be aware, the FIA has recently investigated whether, how and to what extent McLaren was in possession of confidential Ferrari technical information. The FIA has subsequently been made aware of an allegation that one or more McLaren drivers may be in possession, or that such drivers have recently been in possession, of written evidence relevant to this investigation. In the interests of the sport and the Championship it is important that the FIA as the regulator establishes unequivocally and rapidly whether or not this allegation has any basis in fact. The FIA therefore formally requests that you produce copies of any relevant documents which may be in your possession or power of procurement and which may be relevant to this case. For these purposes "documents" includes all written materials such as emails, letters, electronic communications, text messages, notes, memoranda, drawings, diagrams, data, or other material, stored in any physical, "hard copy" or electronic form. In particular (though without limiting the generality of this request), the FIA wishes to receive copies of any electronic communications (howsoever conveyed or stored) which may be relevant to this case and which make reference to Ferrari, Nigel Stepney or any technical or other information coming from or connected with either Ferrari or Mr Stepney. In the event that you are aware of the existence or previous existence of any document falling within the above description but are not in a position to produce it, please describe the content of the document in question, the circumstances under which it came to your knowledge and the reasons why you are unable to produce it. In the event that you are unsure as to whether any document falls within the above description, kindly submit it (or a description of it) and the FIA will assist in making a determination. You will appreciate that there is a duty on all competitors and Super Licence holders to ensure the fairness and legitimacy of the Formula One World Championship. It is therefore imperative that if you do have any such information, you make it available to us without delay. I can confirm, given the importance of this issue, that any information you may make available in response to this letter will not result in any proceedings against you under the International Sporting Code or the Formula One regulations. However, in the event that it later comes to light that you have withheld any potentially relevant information, serious consequences could follow. We are sending identical letters to Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton. We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience. Thank you very much for your co-operation. Yours sincerely Max Mosley

[blue8]

In another dramatic twist in the Stepneygate saga, McLaren have requested that the FIA scrutinise certain matters pertaining to their rivals Renault. The hypothesis swirling around the paddock is that McLaren's opening gambit at the Paris spy hearing will be to implicate other teams. In a pre-emptive strike Renault team principal Flavio Briatore told the Italian media that there was no problem with his team, despite a rumour that Renault were about to be dragged into the affair. The nature of McLaren's complaint regarding the French team has not been disclosed. It is not thought to relate to the spying controversy, although sources have mooted that the focus will be around a technical element on Renault's R27 challenger. F1's governing body confirmed that McLaren's legal representatives had approached them about the Renault matter. However, the FIA have moved quickly to counter the McLaren strategy, by reiterating that the matters pertaining to the Enstone-based team will have no relevance to the World Motor Sport Council meeting this Thursday. An FIA spokesman told Autosport: "We have noted the speculation and we can confirm that McLaren lawyers have recently brought to our attention certain matters regarding Renault F1. "But we can also confirm that the team (Renault) does not form any part of our investigations into McLaren's alleged breach of Article 151C of the International Sporting Code. "The FIA has reminded McLaren that the World Council hearing in Paris on Thursday will focus solely on the new evidence in that investigation. "To the extent required, any other matters will be dealt with as part of an entirely separate process. Renault F1 are aware of this and are happy to cooperate fully."

[yg60m]

Maybe Renault will do the same but with ... Ferrari

[RAMMIUS]

Cheap move from McCheaters to try and divert the attention from their own scandal.

But of course Renault is cheating, I mean look at their race pace

[gangajas]

Really funny explanation of the Stepneygate

http://www.elpais.com/graficos/depor...pepudep_1/Ges/

[RAMMIUS]

the comitee is still "thinking"

Maybe Bernie is on the phone with them