Victory snatched from Irvine

Eddie Irvine's world was turned upside down yesterday as he was sensationally stripped of victory at the inaugural Malaysian Grand Prix. The Ferrari driver had been handed the race win thanks to a stunning supporting drive from returning team-mate Michael Schumacher, and looked to have moved into a four-point lead over arch-rival Mika Hakkinen in the drivers' championship.

But two short hours after celebrating his win with the traditional champagne shower, Irvine was sent from triumph to despair by race officials who ruled that both his and second-placed Schumacher's cars had infringed FIA regulations.

They were disqualified, and the breaches gave third-placed Hakkinen the win, 10 points and, with a 12-point margin over Irvine and just one race left, the world championship crown.

The controversy centres around the deflector panels, the so-called "barge boards" mounted behind the front wheels and in front of the rear. According to the FIA rules, the panel must lie parallel to the under-tray of the car. In Ferrari's case the boards were not within the limits allowed by officials: a small, one-centimetre high cut-out in the board rendered it illegal.

In a short statement, the FIA technical delegate, Jo Bauer, said that post-race bodywork checks had revealed the discrepancy and that he believed they did not comply.

Ferrari team manager Jean Todt was immediately summoned to a stewards' meeting to explain the anomalies, but the explanation was deemed unsatisfactory by the three-man team, headed by Galway solicitor Bryan Brophy. "Having heard the explanation of the competitors' (Ferrari's) representative and the team's technical director, and having heard the explanations of the FIA technical delegate, and the team's acceptance that the bodywork did not conform, the stewards decide that neither car complies with article 3.12.1 of the 1999 FIA Formula One technical regulations and therefore exclude both cars from the event. "The competitor's representative is reminded of his right to appeal."

Ferrari exercised that right, submitting their appeal and a non-refundable $5,000 fee within an hour of the decision. That appeal will now go before the sport's governing body, which will have to convene a court of appeal, either in Paris or Geneva this week or next, to adjudicate on the matter.

Until a decision is reached, and according to the FIA classification released last night, Hakkinen retains his world championship.

McLaren also move into an unassailable lead in the constructors' title race, giving the team a highly controversial double double.

Mercedes motorsport director Norbert Haug said Hakkinen had been informed of the ruling and was presuming himself to be champion, though he was taking nothing as guaranteed.

According to Todt, both Ferraris had been subjected to examination throughout this weekend and at the Nurburgring, where the modifications were first introduced, and no fault had been found.

Ferrari, though, may have a case for appeal in the technical examinations carried out following the European Grand Prix three weeks ago, in which no infringements were reported.

Ferrari press officer Claudio Berro added that while Ferrari had accepted the measurements taken by officials they did not accept the judgment issued. The team now has 48 hours to lodge their official written appeal with the sport's organising body.

Irvine was told of the technical delegate's initial findings before boarding a plane to Macao, where he is taking part in a sponsorship tour, but was unaware of the later decision to exclude the two Ferraris.

The Irishman had earlier admitted that his win had put him in the perfect place to take Ferrari's first drivers' title since 1979 and hailed it as "a fantastic result" for both himself and the team.

After the heartbreaking events of last night, that result indeed appears to be just that - fantasy.