Formula One news

'It was my duty to save the team' - Briatore

Former Renault team boss Flavio Briatore has said on Thursday that he left the Renault team of his own accord as opposed to contradicting reports which claim the Italian was dismissed; the ex-Team Principal has commented that he did so in order to 'save the team'.

With Briatore and Executive Director of Engineering Pat Symonds now out of Formula One as Renault prepares for its 'Crashgate' scandal hearing with the FIA World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) in Paris next Monday, Briatore claims that he departed the Enstone outfit for the good of the team.

"I was just trying to save the team," he told The Mirror. "It's my duty. That's the reason I've finished." With others, such as team owner Eddie Jordan, feeling that the exit is more of a confession, Renault now faces McLaren 2007-esque draconian punishments for the alleged race-fixing of the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.

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