Red Bull to investigate blueprint leak

Spyker lodged their complaint against Toro Rosso before this weekend, believing they had evidence that the STR2 car incorporated parts that were designed or manufactured by rival team Red Bull Racing.

As the race stewards later reported, Spyker's case was based on photographs of a component on the two cars and a "drawing alleged to be of the same component and said by them (Spyker) to be prepared by Red Bull Racing Limited but bearing two drawing numbers, one commencing with the prefix RB3 and the other with TR2."

The revelation that Spyker had got hold of design drawings from Red Bull Racing has intrigued the Milton Keynes-based team, who have vowed to look into how the drawings fell into their rival's hands.

Spyker have not commented on how they got hold of the documents, but autosport.com understands the documents may have been sent to the team anonymously.

Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner told autosport.com: "We were somewhat surprised to hear that Spyker have in their possession drawings of our cars. And inevitably we will look into it following this Grand Prix."

The design drawings, as indicated in a photograph of the documents obtained by autosport.com, are of a lower bracket T tray stay.

It is understood that Spyker were particularly concerned by the fact that the drawing was labeled with a Red Bull Racing logo, which could suggest the team were designing parts for two teams.

The stewards eventually declared that it would be 'inappropriate' for them to rule on the matter because it was already being dealt with by arbitration.

And Toro Rosso co-owner Gerhard Berger told autosport.com yesterday that there was no importance to the fact the design was from 'Red Bull Racing Ltd' rather than independent company Red Bull Technology.

"He (Spyker boss Colin Kolles) still has to understand that we never denied we are working with Red Bull Technology," the Austrian said. "It was always our intention to do [so] from the beginning on.

"Red Bull Technology was before Red Bull Racing Ltd, so they transferred the name, but there were always two different companies in place.

"Unfortunately before they had the same name, one was limited and one was not, but that is all formalities.

"At the end of the day there exists Red Bull Technology, call it what you want, that is where we get our part of our knowledge and that is the structure.

"So he is fighting against the structure and we think in the regulations we are allowed to have this structure."

Although F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone had looked set to raise the matter of customer cars in a team principals' meeting this weekend, autosport.com understands that the subject was not talked about at all in this morning's gathering.

With the stewards deciding to not rule on Spyker's protest and leave the issue up to arbitration proceedings, the subject was ignored as there is less need to find an urgent solution than there appeared to be on Thursday night.