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Alan Henry: Dennis defends himself.

Monday, 4th June 2007

Ron Dennis prides himself on his team's well honed sense of sportsmanship and fair play. He believes that he behaved with well moderated common sense during the closing stages of Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix.

Alonso ran the entire 78-lap race on a two-stop strategy from the outset, with Hamilton originally on a one-stop strategy which meant that he was carrying five laps' more fuel than Alonso in the opening stages of the race.

Once he got to his first refuelling stop and was now comfortably holding second place, the team switched him to a two-stop strategy as this was the fastest option for the balance of the race.

Frank Williams, one of Dennis's most intense rivals over the past couple of decades, agrees that the whole issue of team orders is a little ambiguous.

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"If you tell your driver 'we're concerned about the engine wear, so ease up a bit' and his mate nips past at the next corner, are we really guilty of team orders?

"I must say that, as far as Alonso and Hamilton were concerned, the question of their running to team orders never even crossed my mind. I was just surprised, and the relentless pace they were running. They didn't need to be going that fast."

Like Frank, that was the only bit I failed to understand as well.

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