Sports: Formula One is no stranger to spying

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London, July 12 : Formula One teams have always kept a closeeye on rivals, eager for any gain that might make their cars goquicker, but the current 'spy' controversy goes well beyond that.

As McLaren team boss Ron Dennis explained at the British GrandPrix last weekend, there is a clear dividing line between what isgenerally considered acceptable and what is evidently illegal.

''I remember with great amusement locking another team'saerodynamicist, who was measuring and photographing parts of ourbodywork, into the back of our truck,'' Dennis recalled of one pastincident.

''And you could say that was over the limit.

''Equally, many photographers are commissioned to take detailedphotographs of other people's cars -- and we take detailed photographsof other people's cars,'' added Dennis.

''And that is probably within the accepted practices in grand prix racing.

''There are unwritten limits to which everybody should adhere andclearly these (latest allegations) exceed all previously knownoccurrences.''

Ï¿'NO SURPRICE

The case involving McLaren's chief designerMike Coughlan, suspended last week after a house search found asignificant quantity of confidential Ferrari technical information, hasbeen the talk of the paddock.

There have been allegations of sabotage, denied by former Ferrariengineer Nigel Stepney who has also rejected suggestions that he andformer Benetton colleague and fellow-Briton Coughlan were actingtogether.

The courts will unravel the full story but, whatever the outcome,few if anyone in Formula One will have been surprised by data leakingfrom one team to another.

''You cannot stop it. As long as human beings are around, it willalways be there,'' former champion Niki Lauda said of paddock espionage.

''These things happen, in big car manufacturers and everywhere.It's logical.'' The last such incident happened in 2002 when Ferraritook legal action against two of their engineers who had moved toToyota, whose subsequent car aroused suspicions.

Earlier this season, Spyker principal Colin Kolles presented a RedBull document to try and demonstrate the illegality of that team's car.

Formula One is a sport where people have been known to startrumours just for fun, to see how long it takes before the whispers comefull circle. There is a constant exchange of information.

At the Canadian Grand Prix some years ago, then team boss EddieJordan related how he had been given a digital photograph of a raceengineer's sheet taken by somebody peering down from the Paddock Clubabove.

The Paddock Club is an exclusive area reserved for VIPs, sponsors and special guests.

GARDENING LEAVE

In those days, teams covered up their race carsand erected screens in front of the garages to keep out thephotographers' lenses.

But there is little teams can do when designers and top technicalstaff are headhunted other than impose a period of 'gardening leave'before they start their new jobs.

''You cannot un-invent things,'' said Dennis. ''People move withall the knowledge and inevitably that knowledge is going to appear,sometimes with great perfection and accuracy, on other grand prixcars.'' The classic case of that occurred in 1977, when ex-Shadowemployees founded Arrows.

Their car was built in a mere 60 days but hit trouble when Shadowchief Don Nichols claimed the A1 was nothing more than a copy of hisDN9 -- both designed by Tony Southgate.

The High Court found in favour of Shadow and Arrows had to come upwith a replacement, which they did without even missing a race.

Perhaps the most bizarre case, however, was one that apparently involved real spies.

In 2001, Renault technical director Jean-Jacques His revealed thatthe company's system had been hacked into and final designs for thatyear's Formula One engine tampered with.

The Frenchman blamed former members of the East German Stasi secret police.

Reuters
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