Update | After McLaren also Williams does not appeal against Racing Point protest

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12 August 2020 at 10:10
Last update 12 August 2020 at 10:10
  • GPblog.com

Last weekend a total of five teams announced they would appeal the FIA ruling on the copied parts on the brakes of Racing Point. They would come directly from the drawing board of Mercedes and that is no longer allowed as of this season. McLaren has now announced not to pursue this protest.

Racing Point was punished for this offence with a 400,000 euro fine and a reduction of 15 points in the championship. Where Ferrari and also Renault have confirmed to Motorsport.com the appeal against that penalty by will, McLaren now abandons.

In a statement, the team expresses its satisfaction with the decisions and conclusions of the FIA and that they are happy that the regulations on copying behaviour will be clarified as a result. The team respects the decision of Ferrari and Renault to appeal and will follow that case with interest.

Williams will not announce officially what it will do until Wednesday morning. In The Fast Lane podcast Claire Williams tells that she thinks it's a difficult decision. Her team has always taken the position that they should build their own cars, but they don't really want to wait for this situation.

Update | Williams announces not to protest

The Williams team announced Wednesday morning that it will not appeal the decision of the stewards regarding the illegal RP20 of Racing Point. "After careful consideration, Williams have elected not to proceed with the formal appeal. We believe the FIA’s decision to seek the prohibition of extensive car copying for 2021 onwards addresses our most fundamental concern."

The British race team itself is against copying or buying parts from other teams, but the decision of Williams isn't surprising. The team will get engines from Mercedes. Mercedes and Racing Point pull together to prove their innocence.