Despite having no racing for the next few weeks, there was no shortage of news around the Formula One paddock. The 2008 Crashgate scandal has entered the limelight once again as new evidence has emerged that suggests a cover-up. Williams has some legal trouble with their former sponsor. There’s lots of aftermath of the Australian Grand Prix and some team development information.
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Felipe Massa is looking into legal options to challenge the outcome of the 2008 World Championship. This season was overshadowed by the infamous Crashgate scandal at the Singapore GP that heavily influenced the results of the championship and ultimately led to Lewis Hamilton winning the championship from Felipe Massa in the final corner of the Brazilian GP. Massa and Ferrari pushed to have the Singapore GP results cancelled, which would have made Massa champion, but no public evidence of wrong-doing was revealed until the following year. After the FIA awards ceremony, the regulations prevent the championship results from being altered. However, Massa feels he may have new grounds to take legal action, as former F1 leader Bernie Ecclestone recently revealed in an interview that both he and the FIA had evidence, but intentionally waited to release it until after the results were set in stone to avoid a scandal. 2008 was Massa’s closest chance to win the championship and he retired in 2017 without any championship titles.
Former Williams sponsor ROKiT is seeking $149m from the team in a legal claim. ROKiT has filed legal action against Williams, former deputy team principal Claire Williams, former chief executive officer Mike O’Driscoll and former chief financial officer Doug Lafferty. ROKiT claims the team had guaranteed a competitive car for the 2019 season, but knowingly concealed the fact that they were aware they could not achieve the promise. Williams won a previous legal claim against ROKiT after the two parties terminated their sponsorship agreement in 2020. ROKiT only wanted to pay a percentage of their agreed fees because of the shortened season while Williams alleged that the company was late paying sponsorship fees.
Williams has hired Paul Asencio as their new chief revenue officer. Asencio, who worked in similar roles at the UFC and the Major League Baseball team the New York Mets, will work out of a New York office and be responsible for leading the team’s commercial and marketing operations.
Audi will display a show F1 car at the Auto Shanghai event in China at the end of April. This is part of the German company’s commitment to join Formula One as an engine supplier for the 2026 season. Audi chose this event, as China represents the company’s largest market. The event starts on April 18 and ends on April 27.
A fan was injured by debris at the Australian Grand Prix. Will Sweet was watching the race from a hill with his fiance, when he was struck in the arm by carbon fibre debris. The debris had flew over the catch fencing during Kevin Magnussen’s accident late in the race. Fortunately, the fan was left with only a cut on his forearm, which was treated by circuit medical staff, and a cool story to tell his friends. Debris fences around the Albert Park Circuit are fully compliant with the FIA regulations for circuits hosting Formula One events.
The Australian Grand Prix Corporation will investigate how fans managed to invade the circuit at the end of the race. The AGPC was summoned to the stewards where it was found to have breached Article 12.2.1.h of the FIA International Sporting Code after fans invaded the circuit and were able to reach the stranded Haas of Nico Hulkenberg, who had ran out of fuel during the cooldown lap. The AGPC will be required to investigate the issue and report to the World Motor Sport Council to present a plan to prevent such things from happening in the future. A similar incident occurred at the 2017 Australian Grand Prix.
The FIA may review the procedures for standing restarts after the near miss at the Australian Grand Prix. This issue in question was during the first standing restart, when drivers at the rear of the pack nearly collided. Lewis Hamilton took control of the pace after the safety car line, as is normal for a safety car restart. He slowed the pack to a crawl. Further back, George Russell, who was slow leaving the pit lane, had been racing to catch up to the rest of the pack. Once he caught the pack and slowed, it caught the drivers behind off-guard. The F1 stewards have suggested that the restart procedure for a standing restart be reviewed, as it is questionable why the race leader should even be able to control the pace of the pack when they are just lining up to the grid.
Ferrari has requested right of review over Carlos Sainz’s penalty at the end of the Australian Grand Prix. In the final chaotic restart that ended the Australian Grand Prix, Sainz appeared to entire the first corner too fast and spun Fernando Alonso, who was third place at the time. Despite the positions being reset after the restart, Sainz was still given a five-second time penalty that dropped him outside of the points scoring positions. The FIA will now need to set a date for a hearing to allow Ferrari to make their case.
Ferrari will not be introducing a B-spec car this season, despite their worst start to a season since 2009. Rumours suggested that the team were working on a radical redesign of the car, including a change in the sidepod concept used. Instead, the team plans to release three stages of upgrades in the upcoming months, hoping to correct their performance issues.
Mercedes has denied that they are looking into a Plan B driver, in case Lewis Hamilton does not continue with the team after this season. The seven-time World Champion’s contract with Silver Arrows expires at the end of the season, which has again sparked rumours that the Brit could retire from Formula One. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff insists the team is not yet exploring alternative options.
The Weekly F1 Recap on Racing Clothesline is a series published every Monday. Each article breaks down the previous week's Formula One headlines into bite-sized pieces, perfect for casual fans to keep themselves in the loop.
