F1 的黑色年代

Renault 為了幫 Alonso 贏得冠軍, 命令Pique , 撞車. 這”策略”雖然成功, 但也傷害F1….

 

Spies, lies, crashes - Renault shame caps F1 black years

Thu, 17 Sep 17:39:16 2009

Buzz Up!

PARIS (AFP) - First there was Spygate, then Liegate, now Crashgate. Formula One's seemingly endless capacity to drive itself deeper into the mire has involved more manoeuvres in paddocks and motorhomes than are usually witnessed on the track on a Grand Prix Sunday afternoon.

As a result, one of the most open world championships in recent history has been overshadowed by political, financial and sporting scandal.

Spygate in 2007 proved the start of the recent slide, further whetting the insatiable appetites of the 600 million fans who follow Formula One worldwide, either at the track or from their armchairs.

McLaren were fined a record 100 million dollars after being accused of possessing technical data belonging to Ferrari and were kicked out of the constructors championship.

Then the sport, with its lavish budgets, felt the full chill of the world financial crisis when Honda withdrew from the championship in 2008, no longer able to justify the 200 million dollars they were believed to have spent on the team.

Ironically, the outfit was bought by Ross Brawn for the symbolic fee of one pound sterling, rebranded under his own name and is now heading for the world title.

This month, BMW, the backers of the Sauber team, said they would not take part in the 2010 championship.

The 2009 season was quickly on the pace when it came to scandal with world champion Lewis Hamilton and his McLaren team embroiled in Liegate.

McLaren were eventually handed a suspended three-race ban for bringing the sport into disrepute, the punishment relating to an incident at the Australian Grand Prix when Toyota's Jarno Trulli slid off the track when the safety car was out and was passed by Hamilton who then let the Italian re-overtake.

The stewards in Australia promoted Hamilton to third, ruling that Trulli had illegally overtaken the world champion after being told by Hamilton and McLaren's sporting director Dave Ryan that there had been no instructions to let Trulli pass.

At a second meeting Hamilton and Ryan stuck to their story, only for it to later emerge that Hamilton had in fact let Trulli pass, on instructions from his team.

Now it's Renault's turn to face the FIA after Nelson Piquet junior's confession that he was ordered to crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix to boost the chances of victory for teammate Fernando Alonso.

Team principal Flavio Briatore and engineering chief Pat Symonds have quit and the French team, which boasts a 300 million euro budget, have admitted that they will not contest allegations of cheating.