MOTOR SPORT/Formula One:McLaren pulled their British driver, Lewis Hamilton, and the double world champion, Fernando Alonso, out of scheduled press conferences yesterday as the vitriolic battle between the team and Ferrari threatened to spiral out of control.

The sport's two top teams were last night embroiled in a surly and hostile stand-off as the Ferrari management refused to rise to allegations from Ron Dennis, the McLaren team principal, that the Italian team had fielded an illegal car in which Kimi Raikkonen had won the opening race of the 2007 season in Australia.

Raikkonen was left to comment dryly on the outcome of that race. "If I had been in an illegal car, then I would have been disqualified," said the Finn, deadpan. "But I wasn't."

Ferrari are infuriated by the suggestion that Raikkonen's F2007 was fitted with an illegal flexible floor in the race in Melbourne and that it was subsequently changed in time for the second round of the world championship in Malaysia after rule clarification from the FIA. This may well have been the case but McLaren are now determined to press home what they believe is their moral advantage in this issue ahead of an FIA court of appeal hearing that is expected to be scheduled for the end of this month.

Dennis said on McLaren's website that the team's only knowledge of information allegedly leaked by the former Ferrari engineer Nigel Stepney concerned the stiffness of the floor on the Ferrari at the Australian Grand Prix in March.

Dennis explained Stepney's actions as "whistle blowing" and said such actions should be encouraged in the sport, which he claimed was why McLaren had not alerted Ferrari.

"Were it not for Mr Stepney drawing the illegal device to the attention of McLaren," Dennis said, "there is every reason to suppose that Ferrari would have continued to race with an illegal car."

McLaren had acted to forbid contact between their chief designer, Mike Coughlan, who had been in possession of the Ferrari documents, and Stepney.

Ferrari steadfastly declined to be drawn into the debate. "We have nothing more to say on this subject," said a team spokesman. "The matter will now go to the court of appeal hearing at the end of the month."

Another Ferrari insider, who preferred to remain anonymous, added: "We're not getting involved in a tennis match with McLaren; we've said all we're going to on this controversy."

Guardian Service