Heroes and Villains
Faced with undeniable evidence of McLaren's guilt in the Ferrari
espionage scandal, the team's Martin Whitmarsh has offered up a very
public penance, conspicuously absent the usually requisite
admission of guilt. The team has nevertheless been absolved of
its sins by F1's reincarnation of Cardinal Richelieu, Max Mosley.
Renault, too, has been given special dispensation, completing
the circle of guilt unpunished, and allowing the powerbrokers in
Formula 1 to believe that the long, sorry tale has finally been
removed from the public eye. It isn't likely to be that simple.

The Whiting Report
The complete, but heavily redacted, report on the FIA Technical
Department's extensive investigation of McLaren for 'contamination'
with Ferrari intellectual property, as submitted to the FIA World
Motor Sport Council. File is 8 megs.

Freedom of the Press and Other F1 Myths
Through three espionage hearings, Max Mosley, the FIA World Motor
Sport Council, McLaren, Renault and the F1 press corps have been put
to the test. Precious few among them, and none among Formula 1's
ruling class, received passing marks. In what seems clearly an
attempt to stifle media dissent, one who did pass the test has now
been sued for it.

Rationale or Rationalization?
FIA president Max Mosley attempts to justify the unjustifiable, and
subjects Formula 1 to new restrictions which will turn the sport
into Formula IROC.

Notes on the Road to Perdition, Part One
In the not very distant future, 2007 may well be seen as a turning point for Formula 1. It was the year in which the racing went completely to hell in the proverbial hand basket, and was thoroughly overshadowed by high-tech thievery, quasi-judicial hearings, record fines and Formula Green, which served mostly to obscure the Grand Parades and the far less visible maneuvers which will result in the further emasculation of the sport. We examine here the public events, and the ethics and legality involved, and in a follow-up article, will cover the so-called 'New Concorde' and the changes, already set in stone by Max Mosley, which will almost certainly complete the denigration of Formula 1.

Coming Apart at the Seams
McLaren's carefully constructed image and its equal-drivers racing
philosophy are under assault from without and within. On the eve of
the championship-deciding race, there are also questions about
whether the philosophy has actually been applied, raised not least
by Fernando Alonso. That, and the fact that McLaren has been caught
with both hands in Ferrari's intellectual cookie jar has the team in
some disarray, and the F1 community has become polarized, largely on
the basis of emotion and nationality. The sport's ability to ensure
a level playing field is in serious question, the championship may
be decided long after the final race, in an arbitration hearing or
an appellate or civil court, and the whole thing looks to be on the
verge of coming apart at the seams.

Schedules and Mini-Preview for the Chinese Grand Prix
Complete event schedule, U.S. television schedule, live timing URL,
the schedule of press conferences and the long-range weather forecast
for the penultimate Grand Prix of 2007, at Shanghai. Ron Dennis will
be in the Friday interview, which should prove entertaining, though
not necessarily educational. Lewis Hamilton is 12 points ahead of
Fernando Alonso. If Hamilton wins in China, he becomes the champion-
elect, no matter where Alonso finishes. Hamilton can accomplish the same thing by losing no more than two points to Alonso on Sunday.
While they are currently tied for wins (the first tie-breaker),
Hamilton has five seconds to Alonso's three (second tie-breaker).
Essentially, Hamilton can simply follow Alonso around in China and
Brazil and become champion, though no one expects him to adopt that
strategy.

Exposing Who Exposed McLaren
The media seems to have turned its attention elsewhere, but the
story of McLaren's espionage, and particularly how it finally came
to light, continues to unravel and change, as more documents become
available, and most recently through a disclosure by FIA president
Max Mosley.

Hypocrites, Liars and Bag Men
McLaren pulled off racing's equivalent of grand theft auto, got
caught in the worst case of F1 espionage ever, and gave the sport
a massive black eye. In dispensing swift and sure justice, the FIA's
World Motor Sport Council handed the team a PR fine and, horror of
horrors, took away their constructor points, while leaving Alonso
and Hamilton to decide the drivers' championship between them in
cars that continue to benefit from the team's theft of Ferrari
secrets. Boy, that'll teach 'em.

How the Coverup Unraveled
In the immediate aftermath of McLaren's conviction for spying, it is
being widely said and reported that Fernando Alonso volunteered
information to the FIA, triggering the second investigation and
hearing into his employer's possession and use of Ferrari technical
secrets. The evidence fails to hold Alonso harmless, but it debunks
the rumor, and tells a very different story.

Notes on the Way to the Gallows
An examination of the fact and rumor swirling around the Monza
paddock, in anticipation of McLaren's second examination on espionage
charges by the World Motor Sport Council, and what it all suggests.

Racing to a Foregone Conclusion
How can driving the quickest cars in road racing be boring? The
answer lies in the difference between driving and racing, and in no
less than eight of the 12 races run so far this year the winner has
driven from pole to checkered essentially uncontested. If the drivers
find Grand Prix 'racing' boring -- and they say they do -- what's to
hold the attention and capture the imagination of the fans?

McLaren, and the Sport, on Trial
McLaren having been found guilty by the FIA's World Motor Sport
Council in the Nigel Stepney/Mike Coughlan industrial espionage case
and the (lack of a) sentence, will both now come under review by the
judges in an FIA International Court of Appeal. We examine the case
against McLaren and the decision of the World Council, look at what
is likely to take place in the appellate hearing on September 13th,
and consider the ramifications for the sport.

McLaren Tries Transparency
McLaren's Ron Dennis, having tired of the leaks to the Italian media,
presumably by Ferrari, of widespread criticism of the fact that
McLaren were not punished after being found guilty, and of the
contuing maneuvers of Ferrari, fired back, making public a stinging
five-page letter to Luigi Macaluso, the man who was successful in
getting FIA president Max Mosley to re-open the current scandal, in the FIA International Court of Appeal. As a result of the FIA's
continued silence following the decision of its World Motor Sport
Council, McLaren's statement represented the first hint of
transparency regarding the WMSC hearing, although it was, probably
unavoidably, spun in McLaren's favor.

High Intrigue and Low Ethics
Formula 1, far more than McLaren, is what will be judged
in the sport's latest Trial of the Century

FIA Proposed Chassis and Sporting Regulations for 2011
The FIA's 24-page summary and draft of proposed regulations to govern
chassis design, aerodynamics and related aspects of Formula 1 cars
beginning in 2011.

FIA Proposed Engine and Driveline Regulations for 2011
The FIA's 24-page summary and draft of proposed regulations to govern
engines, transmissions and energy recovery systems in Formula 1
beginning in 2011.

As Predictable As the Sunrise
What the previous six races so strongly indicated, the United States
Grand Prix seems to have confirmed: through a succession of poorly
conceived rule changes, racing for wins in Formula 1 has been
consigned to the five-minute period ending at 3 pm on Saturday
afternoons.

Let My People Go Racing
The general euphoria which greeted Lewis Hamilton's rookie Grand Prix
win in only his sixth start overshadowed a chaotic race which amply
illustrated how much Formula 1 has been diminished by rules which
increasingly stifle technical development, inhibit the application of
skill by drivers and race engineers, and artificially intrude on the
racing to no good purpose.

Monaco and the Not So Grand Prix
By providing an extreme example, the Monaco Grand Prix amply
illustrated why this year's F1 races have been so boring. The
question is, will F1's movers and shakers do something about it,
or just continue to talk about it.

Been There, Done That
It is now quite unusual to hear the Indianapolis 500 referred to by
its historic tagline, the greatest spectacle in racing. A comparison
of the current state of Indy to 1994 amply illustrates why.

Comparative Magic
Our Formula 1 'launch articles' provide photographic comparisons of
the new cars and those they replace. Here, we compare the new cars
to each other, and examine the differences between the design schools
and within them, in the process providing a 2007 F1 spotter's guide.

Revised 2007 Race Calendars
With the addition of two overseas Champ Car races, and the
cancellation of their Denver round, plus the release of Champ Car's
domestic television schedule, we've updated the calendar we published
in mid-January.

Double Vision
Red Bull and Toro Rosso intend to run essentially identical cars in
2007, both penned by Adrian Newey. Super Aguri will evidently race
an updated version of the 2006 Honda. All claim to be constructors
under the terms of the Concorde Agreement. If their position is
upheld, Frank Williams says it will mean the death of the independent
teams the FIA’s Max Mosley said, until it became inconvenient, were
vital to the sport’s very survival. We examine the arguments posed
by each side, and what the outcome will say about the future of
Formula 1.

Williams FW29: Sufficient for a Comeback?
Coming off a dismal year which left it next to last in constructors'
points, and sandwiched between Red Bull and Toro Rosso, the Williams
team has pinned its hopes for a change in fortune on a car which is
essentially a hybrid, borrowing liberally from the two primary design
schools.

Honda RA107: The Search for Diminishing Returns
We thought the new Renault would take the prize for most radical
aerodynamics in 2007. Then we saw the Honda RA107.

Red Bull RB3: Newey Takes a Familiar Approach
Having left McLaren for Red Bull, a fresh challenge and inspiration,
designer Adrian Newey has broken no new ground with the RB3, which he
admits is very "McLarenesque."

Renault R27: And Now, for Something Completely Different....
Tim Densham's team has come up with the first excitingly new car of
the 2007 season. Renault's R27 takes the shrinking sidepod concept
to what would seem to be its ultimate extension. Clever design often
seems obvious in retrospect, and so it is with the R27 dividing the
sidepods into what are effectively a pair each of upper and lower
sidepods, by joining the rear horizontal splitter and the front
vertical splitter into one piece. And, it also serves as a handy
mirror mount.

BMW's F1.07: A dedicated follower of fashion
The 2006 season represented a transition from Sauber to BMW.
Highlights were few and far between, and largely revolved around
bring Robert Kubica into the race team at mid season. For 2007, the
team is fully BMW's, and their massive increase in the budget is
evident in the F1.07. That said, tripling wind tunnel time and the
increasing facility with computational fluid dynamics software simply
allowed the team to create a car which looks like almost every car
that graced 2006 grids. Such are the limits of technology.

McLaren MP4-22. It's all about image.
After a dismal year -- no wins, Raikkonen decamping for Ferrari, and
the PR disaster with Montoya -- McLaren is attempting a comeback, and a
change of its "cold, slightly aloof" image, by "helping young people
chase their dreams." Dream chasing will be a 22-year-old who is F1's
first black driver, and, well, a guy whose dreams and aspirations include a
third consecutive world championship. Their dream vehicle, curiously,
turns out to be a new car that looks amazingly like the one that went
winless last year.

Ferrari F2007: All change at Maranello
The car with which Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa will dispute
number one status at Ferrari made its first laps in the fog at
Fiorano, in Massa's hands. Distinguished by impressively small
sidepods, the F2007 is a logical extension of the F248, yet
significantly changes in an attempt to regain what has been lost
to this year's spec Bridgestone tires.

Toyota TF107 - All New, From Front Wing to Diffuser
The 2007 Toyota F1 racer was the first to break cover. It's all new,
as befits a team plagued by a lack of pace and reliability woes last
season. We look at the differences between the TF106 and the TF107
in detail.

Renault R26 - Championship Car and Engine
Our tribute to the all-conquering Renault R26 of 2006, via a really
nice, staged onboard photo by Bernard Asset and some very detailed
phantom-view artwork provided by the team.

Green Peace
The key to negotiation is allowing everyone to claim victory without
having to make a major sacrifice. So it is with the agreement the
FIA’s Max Mosley and the GPMA’s Burkhard Göschel say will shortly
lead to New Formula 1 and a New Concorde. The one-size-fits-all
solution to six years of fighting will leave Mosley’s in absolute and
unchallenged control, increase the FIA’s power in the EU, sell more
road cars, and allow CVC to recoup its investment through a bond
issue worth $1 billion or more. And for the fans who remain?
‘Improving the show’ is still just a catch phrase in search of a
plan, and the belief that Formula Green will resonate sympathetically
with the man in the pub is an assumption that time, and not much of
it, may well disprove.