Posted by 
© autosport
Flavio Briatore’s back in F1… or at least he could be after having his lifetime ban lifted. He’s also been awarded 15,000 euro in compensation too. Of course, this is a Formula 1 court case and no decision, outcome or conclusion can go unchallenged and it’s no surprise that now, as if the whole lie/crash/piquet-gate hasn’t gone on long enough, the Badger understands that the FIA are appealing the decision. The point, we’re not sure… unless it’s just another way to keep the sport in the headlines.
A while ago, after his ban was announced, we ran an article asking for your Farewell Messages to Flavio, since his ban has now been lifted – are you happy – do you have any welcome back messages?! We’ve asked Nelson Piquet what he thought of the outcome, but he’s yet to respond or must be away from his Twitter account.
UPDATE: It has also emerged that Pat Symonds’ five year ban has been lifted and he’s been given 5,000 euro in compensation. At least the euro – pound conversion rate suits him well :)
Even though i hate all the off-track politics, it does make me giggle sometimes. Every time a decision is made someone has to appeal it!
What are the FIA afraid of with Flavio? There’s got something he knows that makes them go weak at the knees. I’m surprised Pat’s ban was also lifted though, a 5 year ban i felt was almost justifiable, and the same penalty should’ve been awarded to Flavio (and Piquet) at the time rather than the ridiculous lifetime ban.
The question is, if the FIA can’t bring the bans back in, will any team employ them ever again? I would like to think not!
In this case the biggest loser is Piquet Jr. He wasn´t banned by the FIA but all the FIA teams clossed their doors to him and he has to run away and hide on NASCAR. Meanwhile Briatore is free to return and even in the italian press there are rumours about he replacing Eccleston at the time of his retirement.
By the way are agree with the Badger article about Piquet Jr: he had a brilliant career before F1 and he was a pontelially good F1 driver totally wasted, mistreated and destroyed by Briatore.
On the italian and spanish press (which are totally in Briatore´s side) people is claming that there aren´t real evidences of Briatore´s guilt. And the FIA condemed Briatore only on the basic of the statements from Piquet Jr, Symonds and Mister X saying there was this “suggestion” from Briatore to force a provoke the accident in purpose a two hours before the race. So if Briatore isn´t guilty neither is Piquet Jr? He isn´t a cheater or a potential homicide as all the press around the world is saying. There are no evidences that he really did what Briatore suggest him … maybe he just has another real accident more. The telemetry of Singapour accident is the same of other of his several accidents.
Who knows what really happenned but I was surprised at the time that the FIA banned Flatuovio without a hearing where he could present his case, I would have thought an indefinite suspension would have been more appropriate pending a hearing with him. In best FIA, Bernie style that hearing with Flavio could have been held when the wind had blown over and there was some way to make money out of it. I am not sure the french court can enforce a return, anyway we are now seeing an appeal.
Anyway I love Formula 1 and I love all of it, it is a sport, business, politics, reality show and now law practise all rolled into one.