Will McLaren Steal the 2007 Formula One Title from Kimi Raikkonen?

If you ask Lewis Hamilton, he will tell you that Formula One racing titles should be won out on the race track and not in a board room through an appeals process. Yet the board room might just be where the 2007 Driver's Championship may be decided if the McLaren racing team appeals an earlier decision by race stewards not to penalize three cars for fuel temperature violations. The cars finished between Hamilton (who finished 7th) and the eventual winner and points champion Kimi Raikkonen.

Such a move, if it pans out, would put a damper on a racing season that saw three drivers, Hamilton, Raikkonen, and Fernando Alonso (winner of the last two championships), all vying for a shot at the title going into the last race of the year. It was a season which saw the Ferrari driving Finn, Raikkonen, live up to his title of highest paid Formula One driver by winning six races during the course of the season. In comparison, Hamilton and Alonso won four a piece. But since the format for determining the season championship is based on points not wins, Raikkonen finished the season with only a one point edge over Hamilton. The decision to penalize drivers during the last race of the season would elevate the British racer, Hamilton, over the Finn.

Though he would be the one benefiting the most if the appeals process goes McLaren's way, Hamilton has expressed a disinterest in taking a racing title in such fashion, adding that at 22, he is young enough to get other shots at the title in years to come. Hamiltion is not alone in the matter, defending champion and teammate Fernando Alonso echoed the same sentiment saying he would be "embarrassed" if the McLaren team won the title on an appeal. Alonso went as far as calling it an "embarrassment for the sport of racing." More so, Alonso implicated his racing team (McLaren) in the matter, pointing out that his team had not enjoyed a good second half of racing unlike Raikkonen and Ferrari. It remains to be seen if this harsh criticism of his own team leads to Alonso racing elsewhere in the near future. For now the former champion remains under contract to the team.