Mercedes, Pirelli get reprimand for tire testing that rivals claimed unfair

PARIS — Mercedes and drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were cleared Friday to keep chasing the Formula One championship after the team was given a reprimand by FIA for violating rules on tire testing.

The International Automobile Federation tribunal reprimanded Mercedes and Pirelli — the lowest possible penalty — for breaching F1's rules that bar the use of current cars for in-season track tests.

That was the punishment a lawyer for Mercedes suggested to the tribunal at its all-day hearing in Paris on Thursday. The panel also barred the German team from joining other F1 competitors at a planned three-day test session for young drivers in July.

The tribunal determined Pirelli and Mercedes did not intend for the German team to get an unfair advantage from the testing. Mercedes told the tribunal that it took part because it wanted to help Pirelli improve the safety of its tires, which have shed chunks of rubber.

"Neither Pirelli nor Mercedes acted in bad faith," the tribunal ruled.

However, it also said the tests did help Mercedes.

"Mercedes did obtain some material advantage (even if only by way of confirmation of what had not gone wrong) as a result of the testing, which, at least potentially, gave it an unfair sporting advantage," it said.

The wrist-slap for Mercedes and Pirelli from the tribunal of motorsport's governing body avoided the prospect of antagonizing two big players in F1: The German automaker who also supplies engines to other teams and the series' sole supplier of tires.

The furor over Mercedes' private tire tests for Pirelli in May highlighted both the complexity of F1's rules and internal politics and how the teams are constantly peering over each other's shoulders to get an advantage.

The ruling lifted concerns that Mercedes could be heavily fined, barred from races or docked points for providing Pirelli with its 2013 car for the tire tests in Barcelona. The German team also provided Pirelli with its drivers Rosberg and Hamilton, who wore black helmets to avoid attracting attention while testing the tires.

Mercedes said it will not appeal and that it "accepts the proportionate penalties of a reprimand and suspension from the forthcoming Young Driver Test."

"Mercedes looks forward to working with the FIA and its fellow competitors to establish a more rigorous procedure for testing in the future, particularly to support the appointed tire supplier," it said in a statement.

Barring Mercedes from the young drivers' training could cancel out any performance advantage the team may have gained from participating in the Barcelona tests, because it will not be allowed to run its car while other teams do.

The tribunal suggested in its ruling that it hopes this will level the playing field, saying it aimed "insofar as it is reasonably practicable" to put the other teams "in a similar position to that which Mercedes is."

However, there likely will be debate about whether stopping Mercedes from testing with young drivers represents much of a blow. The Barcelona tests in May provided Mercedes and its star drivers Hamilton and Rosberg with track time just one week before the Monaco Grand Prix that Rosberg eventually won.

Former four-time champion Alain Prost called the sanctions "very soft."

"I was expecting maybe something much stronger," Prost told The Associated Press. "It could have been much worse."

But the Frenchman, speaking at a Renault engine unveiling, also noted Mercedes' importance for F1 and suggested the ruling could avoid making waves.

"It may be positive for Formula One that they don't break the equilibrium, you know, between the teams," he said.

The case also exposed confusion in F1 about the rules that govern testing.

Mercedes said it asked veteran FIA executive Charlie Whiting, who oversees the running of F1 races, for permission to run its 2013 car in the Pirelli tests and that he gave his authorization.

But the FIA argued at the hearing that Whiting's opinion wasn't binding.

The FIA's tribunal, which it set up in 2010 for disciplinary cases such as this, largely absolved Mercedes, Pirelli and Whiting on this point.

"Both Pirelli and Mercedes disclosed to FIA at least the essence of what they intended to do in relation to the test and attempted to obtain permission for it; and Mercedes had no reason to believe that approval had not been given," the panel ruled.

It said Whiting also acted "in good faith and with the intention of assisting the parties and consistent with sporting fairness."

The FIA said in a statement it wants to tighten the rules to "make sure, in association with all F1 teams, that its control of the testings is strengthened."