Mclaren found Guilty! F1

Snokio · September 13, 2007, 06:50:52 PM

News Just in......

Mclaren have had their constructors points taken away + a whopping $100 million dollars fine to boot!! - thats an F1 record!

Drivers points are safe however :blink: !

read it here:

http://www.planet-f1.com/story/0,18954,3213_2726904,00.html

Bastet · September 13, 2007, 07:13:01 PM

One could argue that they didnt know or wherent in the possition to do anything about it, and mclaren cant argue that. I recon this is the best ruling, allthough the fine seams a bit overkill

T-Bag · September 13, 2007, 10:12:34 PM

Just glad that drivers points weren't touched, that would have ruined the score just handing the season over to Ferrari ...for like the zillionth time.

(Zillion is a real number trust me I do physics...it's a bit like a 3, but different...it's used to, ermm model orbits and jungles.)

Snokio · September 13, 2007, 10:30:33 PM

thought it was closer to 4 :g:

The press conference video by Ron Dennis is up on BBC news here in case anyone is interested:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/player/sol/newsid_6990000/newsid_6994100/6994138.stm?bw=bb&mp=wm&news=1&ms3=6

suicidal_monkey · September 14, 2007, 03:58:43 PM

from what I've read/heard about it punishments does sound a little harsh but I believe it was a plea-bargaining deal so that the drivers would not lose their points. IMHO however the drivers should most certainly have been docked some points (I understood that it was e-mails between some of the drivers that provided part of the proof of the guilt and therefore they were fully in the know?)

Personally, I would have said that a deduction of /some/ points from both the drivers and constructors tables would have been the right thing to do, particularly as the apparent data would have allowed an advantage in knowing how the Ferraris were braking (at least that is what they said on the news?). I think it would have been most enjoyable for McLarens points (both the drivers and constructors) to have been reduced such that they were in line with the next placed teams (i.e. Ferrari), perhaps via a deduction ofsomething like 2 points per race per driver.

Thulsa Doom · September 14, 2007, 04:31:04 PM

Were Ferrari not running an illegal car in the first 2 races?
They've done it before and always get away with it.

FIA = Ferrari International Assistance.

TeaLeaf · September 14, 2007, 04:56:19 PM

I have to say that over the years Ferrari do seem to have, coughs, got away with quite a bit without this sort of response from the FIA.

My interest is in what actually happened. This is an unprecedented penalty and we have contradictory statements from the FIA and McLaren. There must be one hell of a breach to give this penalty.

McLaren: "The FIA have received statements from all of our drivers confriming no information was received or used"

FIA: "The FIA have not penalised the drivers as they proivided information to the enquiry"

Something in those two does not add up! I'm just wiating to see the leaked version of the meeting minutes.

TL.

TeaLeaf · September 14, 2007, 05:29:08 PM

...and here it is:

http://fia1.greencathedral.com/resources/documents/17844641__WMSC_Decision_130907.pdf

Anonymous · September 14, 2007, 05:48:49 PM

Quote from: TeaLeaf;205706...and here it is:

http://fia1.greencathedral.com/resources/documents/17844641__WMSC_Decision_130907.pdf

Well that's fairly clear cut!

T-Bag · September 14, 2007, 06:27:24 PM

They must have been so happy when the got away with it the first time. They were very open about it within the team, I'm suprised nothing came out sooner.

Snokio · September 14, 2007, 07:08:23 PM

IMHO this sums it up:

FIA reveals evidence that led to penalty

In the emails, extracts of which have been published, de la Rosa talks about information coming from Stepney.

On March 21 de la Rosa wrote an email to Coughlan stating: "Hi Mike, do you know the Red Car's Weight Distribution? It would be important for us to know so that we could try it in the simulator. Thanks in advance, Pedro.

"P.S. I will be in the simulator tomorrow."

Coughlan replied to that email with a text message with the details that were required, although in the end those settings were not tried out.

On March 25 de la Rosa then sent an email to Alonso setting out Ferrari's weight distribution to two decimal places on each of Ferrari's cars for the Australian Grand Prix.

Alonso then replied under a section headed Ferrari: "Its weight distribution surprises me; I don't know either if it's 100 percent reliable, but at least it draws attention."

De la Rosa then replied: "All the information from Ferrari is very reliable. It comes from Nigel Stepney, their former chief mechanic - I don't know what post he holds now. He's the same person who told us in Australia that Kimi was stopping in lap 18. He's very friendly with Mike Coughlan, our Chief Designer, and he told him that."

The evidence then details emails from de la Rosa discussing a flexible wing, aero balance, tyre gas, Ferrari's braking system and the team's stopping strategy.

Furthermore, the FIA examined reports from the Italian police of call logs between Coughlan and Stepney.

The evidence said: "In total, at least 288 SMS messages and 35 telephone calls appear to have passed between Coughlan and Stepney between 11 March 2007 and 3 July 2007."

there is more.....

Luminance · September 14, 2007, 07:09:11 PM

Quote from: T-Bag;205575Just glad that drivers points weren't touched, that would have ruined the score just handing the season over to Ferrari ...for like the zillionth time.

(Zillion is a real number trust me I do physics...it's a bit like a 3, but different...it's used to, ermm model orbits and jungles.)

:roflmao:

but your right, i'm glad those aren't touched, would have spoiled everything.

and agree with bastet, its definitly overkill, but they have to set an example, still licks testikals though :sideways: