Explanations demanded regarding ''Liegate''

As the "Liegate" affair continues to attract attention, the FIA formally announced today that the McLaren Mercedes team has been invited to appear at an extraordinary meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in order to explain the declarations made before the stewards following the Australian Grand Prix.

During the closing stages of the race and while the Safety Car was on the track, Toyota's Jarno Trulli made an error and went wide. McLaren's Lewis Hamilton passed him but immediately enquired with his team if the move was allowed when the Safety Car is present.

Hamilton, unsure, slowed down to let Trulli reclaim his former position; the Italian was afterwards penalized 25 seconds and dropped down from 3rd to 12th position by the stewards for passing while the Safety Car was on track. At the stewards' meeting, Hamilton and McLaren Sporting Director Dave Ryan both assured the stewards that Hamilton has not deliberately allowed Trulli by.

A few days later, a review of McLaren radio communications proved the contrary; Trulli's third place was reinstated and Hamilton's Australian results were excluded from the race.

Since then, the team has been in a whirlwind, with Hamilton apologizing repeatedly and explaining that he had followed Ryan's orders. Ryan was suspended and sent home while team boss Martin Whitmarsh went into damage control, claiming to have missed performing due diligence.

Today the FIA confirmed a special hearing relating to the matter, to be held on Wednesday 29 April.

FIA statement:
"Vodafone McLaren Mercedes has been invited to appear before an extraordinary meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport Council in Paris on Wednesday, 29 April, 2009, to answer charges that, in breach of Article 151c of the International Sporting Code, it

* on 29 March, 2009, told the stewards of the Australian Grand Prix that no instructions were given to Hamilton in Car No. 1 to allow Trulli in Car no. 9 to pass when both cars were behind the safety car, knowing this statement to be untrue;

* procured its driver Hamilton the current World Champion, to support and confirm this untrue statement to the stewards;

* although knowing that as a direct result of its untrue statement to the stewards, another driver and a rival team had been unfairly penalised, made no attempt to rectify the situation either by contacting the FIA or otherwise;

* on 2 April, 2009, at a second hearing before the stewards of the Australian Grand Prix, (meeting in Malaysia) made no attempt to correct the untrue statement of 29 March but, on the contrary, continued to maintain that the statement was true, despite being allowed to listen to a recording of the team instructing Hamilton to let Trulli past and despite being given more than one opportunity to correct its false statement;

* on 2 April, 2009, at the second stewards' hearing, procured its driver Hamilton to continue to assert the truth of the false statement given to the stewards on 29 March, while knowing that what he was saying to the stewards was not true."

Daniel BASTIEN
© CAPSIS International

 

I like how they use "invited"... as if McLaren has a choice!