McLaren to start 2008 with minus points?

[Wizzo]

Bernie Ecclestone has raised the possibility of McLaren starting the 2008 season with a points penalty if the team's new car design is based on information from Ferrari.

McLaren were stripped of all their constructors' points this season and fined 130 million dollars for possessing technical information from Ferrari.

A fresh spying row erupted earlier this month when 2006 champions Renault were charged with unauthorised possession of McLaren information.

[Ian]

My God, he really hates Ron don't he. 

[Alianora La Canta]

This is ridiculous. Coupled with Max's statement that the inspectors are searching for "ideas", this tells me that McLaren will indeed be punished for having a basic understanding of how an F1 car works (which is presumably along the same lines as Ferrari's basic understanding of how an F1 car works). This story gets mouldier and attracts more flies with time, and at this rate I expect it to be developing its own ecosystem by the end of the year.

[Steven Roy]

If I was Ron Dennis I would be trying to track down someone who left Renault between the McLaren data arriving there and arrived at Ferrari before their data arrived at McLaren.  That way he can prove that anything that came from Ferrari may have originally been inspired by a Renault idea and that may have been influenced by a McLaren idea.  makes as much sense as trying to identify a Ferrari inspired McLaren piece in the first place.

Someone ought to tell Bernie to keep his nose out and explain to Max that people and ideas circulate all the time.