Briatore appeal verdict due in January

The hearing got underway in Paris yesterday, with the French court indicating that the verdict will be announced on 5 January.

Briatore was given the ban by the FIA for his involvement in the race-fixing scandal in the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, which saw Nelson Piquet deliberately crash his Renault to help team-mate Fernando Alonso's strategy.

Both team boss Briatore and engineering chief Pat Symonds parted company from Renault prior to the World Motor Sport Council hearing into the incident, at which the FIA barred Briatore from its championships indefinitely and imposed a five-year ban on Symonds, who is also appealing. Piquet was given immunity in exchange for his evidence, while the Renault team received a suspended ban.

In a statement issued when he announced his intention to appeal, Briatore - who did not attend yesterday's hearing - argued that the process of the WMSC decision was incorrect.

"This decision is a legal absurdity and I have every confidence that the French courts will resolve the matter justly and impartially," he said.