Autoblog

Wired has posted a lengthy and thorough dissection of what really happened in last year's Stepneygate F1 scandal. The affair turned Ferrari an even more scarlet red, sucked $100,000,000 from McLaren's bank account and eliminated the team from the constructor's championship, ended the F1 careers of two F1 honchos, and possibly ended Ron Dennis' marriage.

And of course, being F1, it all starts with a tall blond, a sheaf of illegally-possessed documents, and a copy machine. After that come clandestine meetings in airports, furtive text messages, and sabotage. It's probably as close as you're going to get to Bourne or Bond in real life. Follow the link to read the full story.

Thanks for the tip, Todd!

[Source: Wired]

During the Stepneygate scandal over the course of the 2007 Formula 1 season, more than one critic accused the FIA of being on a witch hunt against McLaren. Based on what McLaren said it knew, and what the FIA said it knew, it looked to many like the governing body was simply doing everything possible to put Ferrari in the Championship lead. When the $100,000,000 penalty was given to McLaren, some folks were aghast.

But this one goes firmly to the FIA. McLaren has unreservedly apologized in a letter to the FIA, the World Motorsports Council, and F1 fans for not being forthcoming, for possibly allowing Ferrari secrets to get into its car, and for allowing the FIA's investigation of the team to reveal more information than its own investigation. It also agreed to pay the FIA's expenses for conducting the investigation.

In addition to all of that, McLaren has agreed to "'impose a moratorium' on development of three separate systems that may have been infected by the Ferrari secrets." Those three potentially "infected" systems were on Hamilton and Alonso's 2007 racers, which makes it quite convenient that Hamilton didn't win the Championship. Because of McLaren's acknowledgment of guilt and acceptance of terms, Max Mosley, head of the FIA, has asked that the investigation be closed, and that a February 14th meeting to determine the validity of McLaren's 2008 car be canceled.

[Source: F1 Live]

Thursday, September 13th, the World Motor Sport Council will meet to decide on whether McLaren should be punished for industrial espionage in the Stepneygate affair. What had been winding its way to a peaceful conclusion has now been blown back open with the recent revelation that the drivers exchanged information that came from the Ferrari dossier in McLaren's possession.

Some newspapers claim that in the 166 pages of new evidence is enough damaging material that McLaren and its drivers could be excluded from the 2007 F1 World Championship. McLaren boss Ron Dennis has claimed that no one else in the team knew about the dossier -- and this was before it was revealed that the drivers knew. Now it's claimed that not only did the drivers know, but McLaren actually tried some of Ferrari's technical innovations on its car. Ron Dennis is also accused of trying to bring Renault into the affair, but it is unclear how. If things go against McLaren, the Championship-leading team and its drivers could face exclusion from the Championship this year and beyond.

[Source: Daily F1]

In case you're trying to get up to speed on the whole Formula One espionage case, we were tipped by our buddy Jay that GrandPrix.com has a pretty good summary. Although much of what we've reported already is about the FIA hearings, this gives a pretty good outline of the events behind the case and a timeline of sorts so you can get the whole mess straight in your head -- if you're so inclined.

It's a pretty fascinating read that brings a level of juicy intrigue to the news that is so much fun, and it makes this year's on-track competition seem tame in comparison. Click over to read about Mike Coughlan, his wife, Trudy, Nigel Stepney, and the other players in this melodrama. It reaches deep into both Ferrari's and McLaren's inner workings and gives us a glimpse into just how competitive this premier racing series can be. You'll even read about a third team that might be involved in some way, shape or form. Definitely worth a click for all of you F1 fans out there, and for those who might enjoy a little motorsports soap opera.

[Source: GrandPrix.com]

FIA President Max Mosley (above) announced today that last week's decision by the World Motor sport council will be appealed. It appears the Italian motorsport authorities didn't like the idea of McLaren getting off so easily. Although they found that McLaren had indeed been given Ferrari's confidential materials, the group decided that the British team hadn't benefited from that info and no penalty was assessed. A warning was issued that if their feelings on that matter changed for any reason later in the season, they would revisit their penalty options. One of the reasons for the appeal is that Ferrari wasn't there. Mosley agreed that the outcome of the hearing may have been different if the Maranello firm had attended.

And while all this was going on, one of the parties involved said he thinks there is still a leak at Ferrari. Former head designer, Nigel Stepney, says that the person inside Ferrari who used him as a courier is still with the team. In his statements he makes the Formula 1 world sound like something straight out of a James Bond movie. Well, maybe Austin Powers. Stepney says that Ferrari knows more about the situation than it is admitting. He even claims that he was set up on this issue and on another one from a while back. At one point he had been investigated when a mysterious white powder had been found in the race cars' fuel tanks. He says that he was framed, and that the real culprit put the powder in his pocket while he was taking a shower!

Damn, this is getting good!

Thanks, Jay.

[Source: PitPass]

Remember the case of the former Ferrari Formula 1 tech who shared his company's secrets with rival McLaren-Mercedes? The FIA has announced that it has concluded its investigation into that matter and Team McLaren-Mercedes will not be penalized. Formula 1's governing body held an "extraordinary meeting" of the FIA World Motor Sport Council in Paris today and found that although McLaren did in fact have possession of confidential Ferrari material, there was 'insufficient evidence that it had been used in such a way as to interfere improperly with the FIA Formula 1 World Championship'. So no penalty was given to McLaren-Mercedes.

But the announcement came with a warning. If that information is used "to the detriment of the sport" in the future, the FIA might not be so lenient next time. The suggestion was made that if this were to occur, Ron Dennis and his team would face the 'possibility of exclusion' from the 2007 championship, which they are currently leading. They would also be eliminated from competing in 2008. Disqualification should be a pretty big deterrent, we imagine. Not getting off as easy are the two men at the heart of the issue.

McLaren's chief designer, Mike Coughlan, and Ferrari's former head of performance development, Nigel Stepney, have been 'invited' by the FIA to 'show reasons why they should not be banned from international motor sport for a lengthy period'. Ouch. Should be interesting to hear their responses. We'll keep you posted.

[Source: Crash.net]