Dennis Fights For Job As McLaren Apologise For Cheating Ferrari.

The following is courtesy of the Daily Mail

Lewis Hamilton's boss Ron Dennis was fighting for his Formula One life last night after their McLaren team were forced into a grovelling apology for cheating and corruption.
Hamilton's hopes of winning the 2008 world drivers' title were also hit, with McLaren admitting that Ferrari ideas were used towards next year's car. They must now go back to the drawing board in an incalculable setback three months before the start of the season.

This morning Dennis, who built McLaren into one of the most profitable organisations world sport has known with a turnover of £230million, sees his reputation in tatters: accused of damaging motor racing and the best interests of Hamilton, his protege.
In a statement, the Woking based team said: 'McLaren wish to make a public apology to the FIA, Ferrari, the F1 community and F1 fans throughout the world and offer their assurance that changes are now being made which will ensure nothing comparable to what has taken place will ever happen again.'

McLaren's full admission followed a site inspection by the governing body, FIA, who uncovered irrefutable evidence of wrongdoing on an organised scale.
McLaren, who will foot the £1m bill for the probe at their headquarters, finally apologised for their spying in a letter from Dennis' No 2 Martin Whitmarsh to FIA president Max Mosley last week. The letter and a long statement of regret were published on McLaren's website.
The developments make a mockery of Dennis' emotional defence at Silverstone in July. Fighting back tears, he said: 'I live and breathe this team. And there is no way anything incorrect has taken place here.'

That now looks a hasty remark, made after an all-too brief internal inquiry. Otherwise, it was a premeditated cover-up. Either way, Dennis — the proudest man in the paddock — could pay with his job, which has made him a personal fortune of more than £100m.

The FIA report reveals evidence of a 'senior management figure' and a 'senior McLaren engineer' discussing Ferrari secrets on August 8, more than a month after the scandal was denied by Dennis.
A 'senior McLaren engineer' also alluded to a Ferrari 'mole', while McLaren's description of chief designer Mike Coughlan as a rogue employee with no leadership role has been shown to be false.
It has been an horrific year for McLaren. Their blunders squandered Hamilton's title hopes and they overstated the evidence against Renault for spying on them. Mosley called it a 'barefaced lie'.

Now Dennis, who started in F1 as a 19-year-old mechanic, is unlikely to be around to help Hamilton win the title. The McLaren chairman, 60, owns only 15 per cent of the business and Mercedes, who own 40 per cent, could take control.
The team are already struggling to cope with the £50m fine levied at the second 'Spygate' hearing, as Whitmarsh outlined in his letter to Mosley.
He said: 'Apart from the morale-sapping consequences within the team, its ability to continue its task of generating investment has been made virtually impossible. Consequently, the long-term damage to the team's previously outstanding record and commercial capability is significantly greater than that potentially envisaged by the fiscal penalty imposed.'

McLaren promised to reorganise to prevent a repeat of the offence and will stop developing three offending Ferrari systems applying to next year's car. It prompted Mosley to ask the World Motor Sport Council to end this messy saga by cancelling their hearing scheduled for February 14. By then, Dennis could be spending more time with his supportive American wife Lisa and his golf clubs.

GOOD ON YA RONNY, SEE YOU ON THE TEE.