The F1 paddock is a hot-bed of gossip and one of the favourite topics of conversation is cheating.

Last year we had the Michelin and Bridgestone tyre sagas, closely followed by Toyota's rip off of the 2002 Ferrari, and more recently Sauber's similar attempt at recreating a Maranello winner.

In the wake of the electrifying starts made by both Renault drivers in Melbourne, there was speculation that the French team might have found a way to circumvent the rulebook, BAR's Jenson Button being one of the first to raise doubts.

However the real cheats appear to be a little further down the pitlane, and clearly not averse to admitting that the rules are being broken.

In the latest Newsletter issued by Jaguar Racing, the team's managing director, David Pitchforth, writes:

"Mark was running in a points scoring position and we believe he'd have been seventh quite handsomely and, if he hadn't had a problem with the launch control, quite possibly even higher than that. I was also delighted for Christian as I told him before the race to learn from other drivers and make it to the chequered flag. So a big pat on the back for everyone at the Bicester wind tunnel, Cosworth and Pi because the R5 is more than two seconds a lap faster than R4 - and that's a very good improvement."

Launch control David?

Surely not?