McLaren have been stripped of their points in the 2007 Formula One constructors’ championship.
The FIA World Motor Sport Council has disqualified McLaren from the 2007 constructors’ championship and fined the team $100 million, which is a biggest fine in motorsport history. After a day of discussions and considerations at the hearing in Paris, the governing body decided to punish the team for possessing the confidential Ferrari data.
The decision to exclude Mclaren, who were leading the Constructors’ Championship with 166 points results in handing over the title to Ferrari who has got 143 points. However, McLaren’s drivers have not received any penalty. Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso’s battle for the world championship will therefore continue unaffected in the remaining four rounds.
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McLaren will also need to to present its 2008 car for examination by the FIA before the start of next season. The team must also prove there is no Ferrari ‘intellectual property’ in its cars next year before they can race.
A Ferrari statement said:
In light of new evidence, facts and behaviour of an extremely serious nature and grossly prejudicial to the interest of the sport have been further demonstrated. Ferrari is satisfied that the truth has now emerged.
