FIA gives wrist-slap to Mercedes,Pirelli

The tribunal ruling on Friday lifted the worry that Mercedes could be heavily fined.

Mercedes and its drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were cleared Friday to continue their charge for the Formula One championship after the team escaped with a reprimand for violating the sport’s rules on testing.

By opting for a wrist-slap for Mercedes and Pirelli,motorsport’s governing body avoided the prospect of antagonizing two big players in F1: the German automaker that also supplies engines to other teams and the sport’s sole supplier of tires.

The ruling from the disciplinary tribunal of the International Automobile Federation (FIA) also brought a low-key end to what has been tumultuous and very typically F1 drama.

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 or prevent others from doing so.

The tribunal ruling on Friday lifted the worry 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 anonymous black helmets to avoid attracting attention.

The tribunal ruled that Mercedes breached F1’s rules that bar the use of current cars for in-season track tests.

It reprimanded both Mercedes and Pirelli the lowest possible penalty on a sliding scale of severity. The panel also barred the German team from joining other F1 competitors at a planned three-day test session for young drivers in July.

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That was a punishment which Mercedes’ lawyer had suggested to the FIA’s international tribunal at its all-day hearing in Paris on Thursday.