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GUILTY... BUT NOT GUILTY!
Comments
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/62320
Anyway, say it is 500 MD. So their fine is 20% of their budget. From no wins in 2006 to probably 2007 (drivers) champions, I still think it´s a good deal.
No, if I were Ronzo head for the civil courts and take the affair out of Moseley's and Ecclestone's greedy hands. After all we already have the precedent of the Toyota case.
"But as you can see if you read our accounts, we turn over roughly $450-500 million USD a year, and we are debt-free, so obviously we are a very strong company with phenomenal growth."
And they didn´t look to bothered by the amount itself.
They say that the drivers knew it all, but the team didn´t. If they have defended themselves with dignity, for example through the line of tought Petroltorque followed above (which I do not fully agree), then one could take them seriously. But, please, their version is offensive.
IF one believe that info was used on the McLaren car (in April, May?), why was Stepney getting away with it for so long - or was he set up, as he says? Italian 'postal police' have tracked hundreds of emails and texts between him and Coughlan.
The penalty is ludicrous and this wonderful season is forever tainted, whoever wins.
One things for certain, Steppo is going directly to goal, he will not pass go and he will not pick up £200. If he's not careful Coughlan could be joining his bum chum in chokey as well.
Deary me, all this palaver because the FIA could not accept a tyre war!
"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," De la Rosa e-mailed Alonso on March 25
in an exchange about the Ferrari's weight distribution.
"He's the same person who told us in Australia that Kimi
(Raikkonen) was stopping in lap 18. He's very friendly with Mike
Coughlan, our chief designer, and he told him that."
POLICE ANALYSIS
A few days earlier he had asked Coughlan "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."
On April 12, De la Rosa e-mailed Coughlan asking for details
of Ferrari's braking system.
##
Apparently, the Spanish boys submitted their emails to the FIA after being guaranteed immunity. All very damning.
Although this phrase doesn't ring true "It comes
from Nigel Stepney, their former chief mechanic" - Alonso knows who he is and, surely, you would use code?!! Not that I would ever do this sort of thing ...
Prehaps the "Red Car" was as good as the code got viges???
Presumably, given the tie up with FOM money, the answer to who gets the money is Bernie - as usual. As ever, the punishment is cynically pragmatic, with scant respect for any sense of logic. And it does destroy the credibility of the Championship for us purists. But what do we matter? Inconsistency is the FIA's middle name. Don't know what the F and the A stand for.
Whatever the truth, Alonso showed in Spa that Lewis better watch out.
Senna and Prost revisited? Can't wait till the final race.
There's no way Alonso can stay at Macca now; apparently, Ron has put a stop to him paying each of his mechanics £1000 per race to keep info secret from the other side of the garage. The last three circuits will suit Macca much more. Shame they're not going to Suzuka ...
On track has been fascinating. Up until Silverstone, Alonso was all over the shop a lot of the time, he made more mistakes in half a year than in the rest of his F1 career combined. He seems now to have harnessed his anger into something a bit more productive, and it's been great to see. There was nothing wrong with the Spa start (by modern standards of driving, at least). Hamilton was not alongside at La Source, and it was not as if there was no run off.
If neither has any reliability issue, the last 3 races will be pure strength of will - there's nothing in it in terms of pace.
Shame on Stepney and Coughlan - without the advantage that must have given McLaren, we would have a genuine 4 horse race.
[Edited on 21-9-07 by MinardiP1]
silverghost; I think alot of Alonso's problem this year has been tyre-related and he's got on top of it just in time.
PS which other team would continue to give parity to an employee who'd tried to blackmail the boss?