Two of Ferrari's pit-stops in the inaugural European Grand Prix in Valencia provided talking points after the race, but the team was at least able to quell speculation about the condition of the crew member bowled over by Kimi Raikkonen when his second stop descended into chaos.

Team principal Stefano Domenicali confirmed that, despite appearing to get a faceful of the world champion's right rear wheel as he was pulled to the ground, the refueller had suffered little more than a fractured toe.

"He's very happy that we won," Domenicali reported as the Scuderia returned to base in Maranello, "As an example of the team atmosphere, he said to me 'I'm very sorry, I'm very sorry' - and it was not his fault.

"It just shows how Ferrari people are, the passion that they have, the way they behave and the professionalism that they put in every day. We need to be very proud of the guys who work in this team."

The Ferrari team left Valencia with mixed emotions after seeing Felipe Massa take a comfortable win - spoiled only by accusations of a pit-lane infringement - while Raikkonen suffered the Prancing Horse's second engine failure in as many races. It was the pit-lane, however, where much of the attention fell on the team, but Domenicali was quick to defend the controversial 'traffic light system' that the team uses instead of the conventional 'lollipop' used by the rest of the field.

"When the fuel nozzle is connected to the car, you see that there is a red light on," he explained, "At a certain moment, you see that there is a flashing light that is close to the red light, telling the driver that he has to be ready. Then, as soon as the nozzle comes off, the light becomes green - unless the guy controlling the pit-stop position overrides it manually because there is a car in the fast lane coming through."

The first year team boss insisted that the system was not so complicated that it made the refuelling procedure more risky than anywhere else in pit-lane.

"We've used it since last year and I don't think so, to be honest," he continued, "When there is a red flight, it's a red light, it's like the lollipop is down. I don't think that we need to go towards that depth. Of course, we need to make sure that the system is always working, but this is another story."

Domenicali insisted that the light was red when Raikkonen attempted to rejoin, pushing the blame onto his driver, who was attempting to maintain position in a race where he again appeared to struggle. Unable to match the fleeing Massa, the Finn was mired in a battle with countryman Heikki Kovalainen for the minor points, and it is likely that he, and the refuelling crew, simply acted in haste because of the situation on track, but Domenicali was equally quick to refute suggestions that the team was not sufficiently practiced in the art of quick pit-stops.

"We are doing pit-stop practice at home, trying to do more simulation or some rehearsals," he said, denying that the claim that teams no longer have a T-car with which to practice on race weekend was an issue, "The fact that we can't do it at a race, I don't think is a problem."