Dennis vows to stay at McLaren helm
McLaren boss Ron Dennis has ruled out quitting Formula One despite rating a spy controversy gripping his team as the 'most extreme' test of his many years in the sport
"I think there's a few people around who would like me to (go)," the 60-year-old told reporters at the Italian Grand Prix on Saturday after the team swept the front row in qualifying with champion Fernando Alonso and rookie front-runner Lewis Hamilton.
"If it's something that I thought would further the interests of the company, if I thought it was the right thing to do, then I wouldn't hesitate to do it.
"But I don't think it is the right thing to do."
Leaders McLaren, accused of benefiting from leaked Ferrari information, face a hearing in Paris on Thursday that could wreck their title hopes. In a worst case scenario, they could be kicked out of the championship this year and next.
They also have another appeal hearing coming up to reconsider a sanction imposed at last month's Hungarian Grand Prix that stripped them of 15 points in the constructors' championship.
This week the Mercedes-powered team were also fined $50,000 for using a gearbox that had not been crash tested in that same Hungarian race.
Dennis also faced questions on Saturday about the possibility of legal action against him by Italian police investigating the leak of a 780-page technical dossier from Ferrari.
Italian media said Dennis was due to receive an "avviso di garanzia" from the prosecutor in Modena, a legal notification that he is suspected of a crime and is being investigated. However, it may not necessarily lead to a charge.
The notification refers to sporting fraud, embezzlement and the revealing of industrial secrets.
Former Ferrari engineer Nigel Stepney and McLaren chief designer Mike Coughlan, now suspended, have also been issued with such a notification along with another unnamed McLaren employee, media reports said.
However Dennis, who is adamant that McLaren have not incorporated into their cars any of the Ferrari information found at Coughlan's home, told reporters he was unaware of any documents being served.
"Maybe it's going to happen, but it hasn't yet," he said.
Additional reporting by Mark Meadows in Milan
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