Ferrari and Renault appeal against stewards’ verdict in Racing Point case, Williams and McLaren decline

Ferrari and Renault have opted to officially appeal against the verdict reached by the FIA stewards in the long-running saga over the legality of Racing Point’s brake ducts.

The stewards declared Racing Point had not designed their rear brake ducts themselves, and thus fined them heavily and deducted 15 world championship points from their season's tally. Crucially, however, the team were allowed to keep running the parts on their car.

Many teams did not agree with the outcome. Ferrari along with McLaren and Renault, notified the FIA of their intention to appeal on Friday evening at Silverstone, just 12 hours after the decision was announced. Williams joined them, with Racing Point announcing an intention to appeal in the other direction, too.

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They then had a 96-hour period in which to decide whether or not they wanted to push through the appeal, and on Tuesday evening, Ferrari became the first team to do so. They have also appealed against the decision to reprimand Racing Point after the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix.

“Please note we have just confirmed our intention to appeal against the Stewards’ decision Document 4 (issued on August 7 at 9:30) and Document 41 (issued on August 9 at 16:44),” said Ferrari in a statement.

READ MORE: 'Angry' Racing Point owner Lawrence Stroll says he's ‘appalled’ with rivals as he hits out at accusations of cheating

Renault announced on Tuesday evening they would also be appealing the ruling.

"We have confirmed our intention to appeal against the Stewards’ decision in respect of the Racing Point brake ducts," the team said in a statement.

"In the meantime, we will continue to work intensively with the FIA and all stakeholders to develop and implement a clear and enforceable regulatory framework that will ensure all teams participating in the 2021 season will develop their original aerodynamic concept by themselves."

As a result, the case will now go to the FIA’s International Court of Appeal.

Meanwhile McLaren have confirmed they won't be pursuing the matter.

"McLaren Racing has decided not to appeal the decisions of the FIA Stewards in relation to Renault’s protests of Racing Point," the team said.

"The team welcomes the Stewards’ decisions and findings in this case and importantly that the FIA has demonstrated that transgressions of the rules will be investigated and punished.

"Moreover, McLaren Racing is pleased that the FIA will further clarify the sporting and technical regulations to protect Formula 1 as a sport where teams are clearly defined as Constructors, and removes the potential that the Formula 1 World Championship includes cars that are, in effect, copies of other competitors’.

"Taking the above and a broad view of all factors into account, McLaren Racing will not continue with an appeal in this case.

"Additionally, McLaren Racing respects the decisions of Ferrari and Renault to pursue their appeals and will follow proceedings with interest. There will no further comment at this time."

Meanwhile, despite Williams having expressed surprise at the severity of the punishment, the team confirmed on Wednesday ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix that they would not be proceeding with an appeal - while it's as yet unclear whether Racing Point will join Ferrari and Renault in officially confirming an appeal before the deadline.

Racing Point owner Lawrence Stroll broke his silence following the verdict, boldly defending his team, saying he is “appalled” by the “poor sportsmanship of our competitors".