[Aditya]

Nigel Stepney had finally spoken publicly about 2007 spygate and further on Ferrari ‘illegal’ car on the first race of the season, which won Australian GP that year in hand of Kimi Raikkonen. I’ve collected some links about it.
http://www.racecar-engineering.com/news/stepney-reveals-2007-f1-espionage-scandal-details/
http://www.auto123.com/en/racing-news/f1-nigel-stepney-says-the-ferrari-was-illegal-in-2007
http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2007/8/6569.html

is there some new perspective there, or is it just recycled news?
your insights is appreciated.

[Iestyn Davies]

I do remember Kimi winning that race easily, and the Ferrari not looking as good as that again all year – so there is some gut feelings on my part that he could be telling the truth.

[James Brickles]

I remember Ferrari ran some sort of moveable floor in the first race 2007 which promptly got banned for the next race after a rules clarification, so I think it’s old news.

[ed24f1]

Yeah, I remember this being pretty obvious at the time.

[Anonymous]

It was in the “grey letters” of the regulatioins, not illegal. Banned later, as James Brickles says. but legal at the time of that race.

[Aditya]

kinda similar with RB hollow floors in Monaco 2012, wasn’t it?
by the way, the whole story of spygate is still very strange for me. was McLaren really paid the $100 millions fine?

[Kingshark]

@fastiesty

I do remember Kimi winning that race easily, and the Ferrari not looking as good as that again all year – so there is some gut feelings on my part that he could be telling the truth.

Ferrari were more dominant in Brazil (won by 1 minute), France (won by 35 seconds), Turkey (won by 26 seconds), and Belgium (won by 15 seconds) than they were in Australia; so I’m not sure what you’re talking about.

This is old news though, Ferrari had to modify the floor for the next race anyway.

[Force Maikel]

It’s easy to make such comments XX years after the event, but in this instance it’s weird because it was pretty obvious at the time…

[Iestyn Davies]

I was mainly talking about my perception of their speed – I think it was Raikkonen winning on debut that did it. A bit like Australia 2013 – he just snuck a win with one stop less, but it looked so smooth and under control.

I do remember the exhaust failing in France and still coming second (the start of Raikkonen’s season going off the rails), and a 1-2 in Brazil with Massa ceding the win for the team/Kimi to win the WDC.

But yes, late 2008 was all about McLaren and Ferrari going gung-ho for the title, while everyone else (even BMW who had their only shot!) started work on the 2009 car (BMW probably felt the recession kicking in, quitting one year later). McLaren’s 2009 car looked like they had designed it after the 2008 WDC party had died down, and rushed badly with a hangover! But the B spec car, coming after Britain, was the real car they should have produced, while Ferrari gave up on 2009 (their car was slightly better to mid-season/Massa accident) and turned to 2010 with Alonso. But Kimi was then unleashed, and he somehow won at Spa with the KERS pass on Fisichella, who was then nowhere next to him for the rest of the year. The first half of 2009 is effectively Hamilton’s only real time with a bad car (start of this year they made a Q car).

[Kingshark]

@fastiesty

I do remember the exhaust failing in France and still coming second (the start of Raikkonen’s season going off the rails),

That was 2008, in 2007, Kimi won that race ahead of Massa.

I agree mostly about the other things you wrote. ;-)

[GeeMac]

@adityafakhri Yup they paid it alright. Max Mosley joked that the amount of the fine was “$5 million for the offence and $95 million for Ron Dennis being a twat”. :)

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