28/03/2009
NEWS STORY
The FIA has announced that its International Court of Appeal will hear the case relating to the diffuser row on April 14.
As expected, three teams protested the diffusers on the Williams, Toyota and Brawn cars, however the official Race Stewards in Melbourne declared the cars fully legal. The three protesting teams, Ferrari, Renault and Red Bull subsequently appealed the stewards decision, hence the hearing.
A statement issued by the FIA reads: "The FIA's International Court of Appeal (ICA) has received appeals from National Sporting Authorities in Austria, France and Italy on behalf of Red Bull Racing, ING Renault F1 Team and Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro against the Stewards' decision at the Grand Prix of Australia to reject the protests lodged regarding the diffusers used by some competitors. A hearing will be held in Paris on 14th April 2009 at 10:00am CET."
Whatever the result of the appeal hearing this weekend's result, and that in Malaysia, will stand. However, if the appeal is upheld and the diffusers declared illegal Williams, Toyota and Brawn will need to ensure that their diffusers are fully legal for the Chinese GP.
On the other hand, if the appeal is rejected, one can expect all the other teams to modify their diffusers accordingly.