Renault rue lack of 'sporting spirit'

Denis Chevrier, Renault's chief of engine operations, believes that the friction between his team and Ferrari this season is in complete contrast with the pure racing battle that they had with McLaren 12 months ago.

That is why Chevrier has joined team boss Flavio Briatore in claiming he has no sympathy for the way Michael Schumacher's title charge was all but killed off with engine failure at Suzuka last weekend.

"We have faced so many misfortunes within the past two months that we were convinced the problems made our rivals very aggressive and proud," said Chevrier in this week's Autosport.

"The fact that they have shown a weak point shows how difficult this fight has been, but I must say that in contrast with my feelings last year fighting McLaren, I was not sad when I saw their failure.

"Last year it was just a question of who was faster on the track. This year there was much less sporting spirit and less spirit of pure competition."

Chevrier's comments come after Briatore said that fighting Ferrari this year was completely different to competing against McLaren because of the political aspects that come with it.

The teams have clashed over mass dampers and blocking incidents in qualifying this year.

"If you are fighting with McLaren it is fine, if you fight with these guys (Ferrari) it is impossible," said Briatore in Suzuka.