McLaren suspends high-ranking employee

McLaren-Mercedes said on Tuesday they have suspended a high-ranking technical employee accused by Ferrari of spying on the Italian constructor.

"McLaren became aware on the 3rd July 2007 that a senior member of its technical organisation was the subject of a Ferrari investigation regarding the receipt of technical information," said a statement on the team's website.

"The team has learnt that this individual had personally received a package of technical information from a Ferrari employee at the end of April.

"Whilst McLaren has no involvement in the matter and condemns such actions it will fully co-operate with any investigation. The individual has in the meanwhile been suspended by the company pending a full and proper investigation of the matter."

Ferrari confirmed to AFP on Tuesday that it has sacked a member of its technical staff, Nigel Stepney, who it accused of attempting to sabotage its cars.

Ferrari also said they have presented a case against Stepney and a McLaren engineer to the court in Modena, concerning the theft of technical information.

At the end of April a judge in Modena found two ex-Ferrari employees guilty of industrial espionage.

Mauro Iacconi and Angelo Santini had passed on information to Japanese outfit Toyota, although they fired the pair before the matter became public.

Sunday quotes: Ferrari

Kimi Raikkonen(P1):
"Finally! Everything went the right way in my race. It was vital that I managed to get past Hamilton at the start and then I always tried to stay with Felipe. I knew I had a few laps in hand but, at my first pit stop, I had a bit of traffic and I was unable to get in the lead. Then at the second stop, the situation was turned around and I came out in front. Right from the start of the weekend we have been strong and this win is the reward for all the hard work carried out over the past few weeks. Now we must continue to improve the car because there is still room to do so, starting with the next race which we should tackle with the same approach that we used here in Magny-Cours."

Felipe Massa(P2):
"First of all I want to say I am happy for the team, as it needed this sort of result after a difficult spell. Of course, I would have wanted to win but I was delayed by traffic in the decisive phase of the race, when I knew I had to build up a bit of a lead over Kimi to stay ahead of him during the pit stops. The way the cars are today, you start to get some turbulence from the cars that are a certain distance ahead of you and so it is difficult to overtake even the slower cars if they don't really move over for you. My car was almost perfect and when I had a clear track ahead of me I was quickest on track. In any case, we have made up ground in both championships and we must continue down this path, starting already in Silverstone."

Jean Todt (Team Principal):
"What a great one-two! I could not have a nicer present to celebrate the fourteenth anniversary of my arrival at the helm of the Scuderia. Today, everything went perfectly, which is what is needed to get a result like this. Both drivers got great starts, then they drove exceptionally well and fought it out between themselves for the win. Only traffic and strategy finally decided which one got the upper hand. In any case, what matters is that two red Ferrari cars finished ahead of the rest. The team did an impeccable job and the F2007s were up to the job in hand. We fought a very strong opponent and this one-two is crucial for the rest of both championships. There are still nine races to go and everything is still possible. We should try and repeat this result already next week in Silverstone, at the home of our main rivals."

Luca Baldisserri (Head of Track Operations):
"A really great victory! After a strong showing in qualifying, today we had further confirmation that we are competitive in race trim, with the F2007 running completely trouble free. Both drivers fought it out on equal terms, only the traffic making the difference. We have worked so hard these past few weeks, both in the factory and on track. This one-two shows how much Formula 1 is a sport where every detail is important if one is to be the best. We did not die in Indianapolis, so it is not a miracle that we are back today. We worked on all areas and we managed to put together all the pieces of the jigsaw to produce a perfect weekend."

Raikkonen hailed in Italy

The notorious Italian press heralded the apparent return to form of Kimi Raikkonen and his Ferrari team after the French grand prix on Sunday.

Corriere dello Sport said the famous outfit from Maranello "awoke from its slumber" at Magny Cours following three recent defeats.

And Finland's Raikkonen "drove like Schumi. After Ferrari's one-two victory the world championship is open again".

"Kimi's slump has come to an end. Now the Finn has a real chance for the title."

Tuttosport agreed: "Raikkonen is back, and with the double (one two) victory a crisis is over."

La Gazzetta dello Sport added: "Raikkonen did not have a simple task to take Schumacher's place. But in Magny Cours he proved again that he also has the talent of the German."

La Repubblica also focused on 27-year-old Raikkonen, after he struggled in recent races to match the pace of his previously less-rated teammate Felipe Massa.

"The difficult phase for him is over," the newspaper observed. "He struck a large blow at his critics and can now go on to prove that he is a worthy successor for Schumi".

Spain's Diario As turned to Fernando Alonso's continuing problems, remarking that the reigning world champion "tried everything" to rise above his seventh place.

But at least "Ferrari's success reduced the damage with regards to (Lewis) Hamilton," the newspaper wrote.

"Alonso continues to lose ground in the championship while Ferrari dominated the race from A to Z", 'Sport' added, while Marca agreed: "Thanks, Ferrari! Your double victory prevented Hamilton from extending his lead too much more".

Ferrari dismiss Stepney

Ferrari has dismissed Nigel Stepney, the engineer at the centre of an as yet undisclosed legal investigation currently underway.

Following an internal investigation and disciplinary procedure, the team confirmed that the Englishman – currently on holiday in the Philippines – is ‘no longer an employee’ of Ferrari

Details of the charge against Stepney are unknown, but rumours range from attempted sabotage of the Ferrari cars around the time of the Monaco Grand Prix, to concerns that he was about to leave to join Honda, taking a number of Ferrari employees with him.

Stepney – through his lawyer – has denied any wrong-doing, and expressed confidence that he will be cleared while claiming the affair is part of a ‘dirty tricks’ campaign on behalf of Ferrari

He is due to return to Italy later this week, and is expected to hold a press conference soon after.

We made Ferrari look good says McLaren boss

McLaren boss Ron Dennis believes that a poor weekend from his team at Magny-Cours made Ferrari appear faster than they actually were.

Ferrari drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa finished first and second respectively in Sunday's French Grand Prix and the Italian team have welcomed the result as a sign that recent technical upgrades have significantly improved their pace.

However, Dennis does not believe that Ferrari have gained a speed advantage over his team who will now look to reassert themselves in next weekend's British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

"We flattered them [Ferrari] this weekend," said Dennis. "They did a good job, and probably improved the car a little bit. But we made them look a lot better than they were. Hopefully, we will demonstrate that at Silverstone."

McLaren never found the ideal set-up for the idiosyncrasies of the Magny-Cours circuit and were also hindered by Spaniard Fernando Alonso starting tenth on the grid after suffering a gearbox problem in qualifying.

Alonso could only recover to finish seventh and his British rookie teammate Lewis Hamilton finished third, half a minute behind the Ferraris.

But as Hamilton remains top of the driver's championship and McLaren are 25 points clear in the constructor's standings, Dennis is not too disheartened by Ferrari's French dominance.

"Overall, it was damage limitation from beginning to end," he said, reflecting on the weekend's events.

"Obviously we're delighted that Kimi won over Massa. It means he is only a couple of points closer to Lewis, and didn't close the gap that much, even on Fernando.

"If this is going to be our worst race then we'll be comfortable with that. And if we hadn't had such good races before, we wouldn't be where we are in the world championship. So we've got to put it down to the fact you can't win every race, and this is one we didn't win.

"But we've won here previously, and there is no reason that we can't win at Silverstone. You know, as history has shown, when you have got a good lead in the world championship, you have got to be pragmatic about your races.

"Lewis did a really solid job at finishing third. It's his eighth podium position, and there is no luck that gives you that sort of result. For me, I loved Fernando's fight; I think he was fighting from beginning to end, and he got the most out of a difficult situation. And that's motor racing."

Hamilton remains confident

Lewis Hamilton remains confident for next weekend’s British Grand Prix despite losing out to the two Ferraris in France on Sunday.

The McLaren driver who finished over 30 seconds behind race winner Kimi Räikkönen insisted his result at Magny-Cours was not a cause for any concern.

“I think you can’t win every race and the most important thing is that you are consistent which I think we are,” he told reporters after the race.

“I think here they (Ferrari) made a good improvement, a good step forward at Silverstone, and even we made a step forward, but this weekend when you are behind people it is a lot harder to show true pace.

However, Hamilton who still leads the Drivers’ Championship, stressed traffic had also played a significant role in Sunday’s race.

“I don’t think they were as quick as they looked, not that much faster; I don’t know what times they were doing, but there was obviously a big gap and traffic and strategy had a lot to do with that. I am sure we can bounce back at the next race, without a doubt.”

The 22-year-old rookie reiterated that his eight consecutive podium finishes was still way beyond his wildest expectations.

“I think and I keep saying that I didn’t even expect to finish on the podium in my first race let alone eight races in the season so I am very happy with the job that I have done and the job that the team have done.

He added: “I think that going into my first Silverstone Grand Prix in the team that I have always wanted to drive for and leading the world championship is one of the greatest feelings that a driver can have.”

Raikkonen wins as Ferrari dominate in France

Kimi Raikkonen returned to form in style when he claimed an emphatic victory in the French Grand Prix as Ferrari delivered a dominant one-two triumph.

Finn Raikkonen, 27, came home two seconds ahead of his Ferrari team-mate Brazilian Felipe Massa as the Italian team ended rivals McLaren's three race sequence of victories.

It was Raikkonen's first win since the season-opening Australian race in Melbourne on March 18, his second of the season and the 11th of his career and a memorable way of saying 'adieu' to the remote Magny-Cours circuit, hosting the French race for the final time.

It meant also that after eight races this year four drivers have shared the victories with two apiece and, for Raikkonen, it was a powerful response to doubters who have suggested he lacked the discipline and resolve to become a successful Ferrari driver after his move from McLaren.

Massa, who led for more than half of the race, finished second ahead of 22-year-old British rookie Lewis Hamilton in his McLaren Mercedes-Benz, a result that meant the young Englishman extended his lead in the drivers' championship.

His team-mate and chief rival defending double drivers' champion Fernando Alonso of Spain, who started from 10th position on the grid, was unable to fight his way through the field and finished seventh.