Ferrari handed staggering six-figure fine after team order controversy – On This Day

16 years ago today, one of the most controversial moments in modern Formula 1 history unfolded at Hockenheim. 

The 2010 German Grand Prix, held on 25 July, became the race forever defined not by what happened on track, but by what was said over the radio.

Felipe Massa had led the race from the start, controlling the field with Fernando Alonso running in close company behind. 

By the second half of the grand prix, Alonso was the stronger title contender and sat higher in the championship standings, yet he could not find a way past his teammate on track.

Then, on lap 49, came the message. Massa's race engineer Rob Smedley delivered the now-iconic instruction: "OK, so, Fernando is faster than you. Can you confirm you understood that message?"

Moments later, Massa visibly slowed exiting the Turn 6 hairpin, an unusual place to back off, and Alonso drove past into the lead. 

Smedley then followed up with a second transmission that only confirmed what everyone already suspected: "Good lad. Just stick with it now. Sorry."

Alonso took the chequered flag, with Massa second and Sebastian Vettel completing the podium for Red Bull.

The fallout

The stewards found Ferrari in breach of Article 39.1 of the Sporting Regulations, which explicitly stated that team orders interfering with a race result were prohibited. 

The Scuderia were handed a $100,000 fine, though crucially, the race result was left unchanged.

The case was referred to the FIA World Motor Sport Council for further review. In September 2010, the WMSC upheld the fine but chose not to impose any additional sanctions.

Perhaps the most lasting consequence, however, was not the penalty but the rule change it triggered. 

The controversy exposed just how difficult policing coded instructions truly was, and by the end of that season, the FIA dropped its explicit ban on team orders altogether.