Melbourne Stewards passes diffuser regardless of protests

lbert Park stewards have thrown out a protest against the much-talked-about diffusers on the Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams cars, leaving all three teams free to race their designs unchanged in this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.

Rivals suspect that Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams have found a loophole in the regulations which allows them to run a taller diffuser. The cars cleared Thursday scrutineering in Melbourne, prompting Ferrari, Red Bull and Renault to lodge an official protest, questioning the legality of the designs.

However, following lengthy discussions with the various parties, stewards reiterated their belief that the cars are legal. That decision is expected to be appealed, which would require a hearing of the FIA’s International Court of Appeal. That would be unlikely to take place until after next weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix.

“We are pleased with the decision of the race stewards but we prefer not to comment further on the situation,” said Toyota’s team principal Tadashi Yamashina. “This weekend promises to be a tremendously exciting Australian Grand Prix so we are now looking forward to starting the competition on track with the first practice sessions on Friday.”

Williams’ technical director, Sam Michael, added: “We are pleased with the Stewards’ decision and we have no further comment to make.”