04-Sep-09: Renault Called to Face WMSC Charges

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Hello and welcome to F1 minute for the 4th September.

Renault have officially been called up by the FIA to attend an extraordinary meeting of the World Motorsport Council. The hearing is to take place on the 21st September, which is the week between the Italian and Singapore races. The FIA said: “The team representatives have been called to answer charges… that the team conspired with its driver, Nelson Piquet Jr, to cause a deliberate crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix with the aim of causing the deployment of the safety car to the advantage of its other driver, Fernando Alonso.” Renault have acknowledged the summons but won’t make any comment until after the hearing.

Elsewhere, Autosport reports that top chiefs at Toyota aren’t planning to pull out of F1 this year. Although the budget won’t be signed off until mid-November, and there are expected to be huge cuts to spending in the sport, the Japanese team should still be present in the 2010 season.

That’s all for now, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.