Indy Lawsuits Still on Despite Verdict

Although the FIA have said that they will hand out penalties to the teams in September, with lenient sentencing likely if Indianapolis fans have been suitably compensated, early reaction from the United States has not been all positive.

With several spectators already having filed lawsuits against Formula One for the Indianapolis fiasco, one of the lawyers pushing for the action has said that he believes it is not satisfactory for the FIA to have simply blamed the teams and tyre supplier Michelin for the events.

"It's not enough to point a finger at Michelin and just say, 'Fix it,' " said Indianapolis-based lawyer William Bock in a statement. "The supposed guardians of the sport owe a duty to the fans to be part of the solution.

"Apparently, the FIA and Formula One hope that the furore over the (US GP) debacle will blow over if they ignore it for three months."

Indianapolis itself has refused to get dragged into the situation since the US GP, with track officials telling the Indianapolis Star newspaper that they were focused on ensuring fans are suitably compensated for what happened.

Only once that is sorted will the track consider the future of the race.

"Until that's resolved, there won't be much energy spent on 2006," said spokesman Ron Green.