Mercedes surprised by Audi's decision

Audi's head of motorsport Wolfgang Ullrich decided to pull his cars in during the closing stages of the race, as he felt that several Mercedes drivers had been too rough on the track.

Their actions meant that only six cars were still running when the chequered flag came out, and the Spanish fans expressed their disgust with the decision as Audi team members walked up the pitlane.

Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug said: "I cannot understand the decision to take the cars out of the race, when we already have a 1-2-3 that we deserved."

Bruno Spengler, who is now just two points behind championship leader Mattias Ekstrom after Sunday's event, added that he didn't agree with Audi's decision.

"There was no reason to take away the cars," Spengler told autosport.com. "We have also had hard moments, but we never took our cars away.

"I think it's a bit of an aggressive decision. It's a bit of a shame to do that for no particular reason."

Haug also said Mercedes were planning to appeal the penalties imposed on Mika Hakkinen and Danie la Rosa in Sunday's race.

"The HWA team will appeal against the penalties imposed on Mika and Daniel; there are comparable situations, which have been judged in a different way," he added.

"I now hope for an exciting final race in Hockenheim and that oil will be poured on the troubled water - I offer our cooperation for it."