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Ferrari's bid for review of penalty against Vettel is rejected

LE CASTELLET, France — Formula One stewards on Friday dashed Ferrari's hopes of overturning a penalty that denied Sebastian Vettel victory in Canada, ruling that the Italian team had not presented significant and new evidence. Vettel, who finished first in Montreal on June 9 but was demoted to runner-up behind Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton after a five second penalty, told BBC radio he was disappointed with the outcome. Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto, who had sought a review of the Montreal decision, echoed the sentiment and told reporters the matter was now closed. "As Ferrari we are all very unhappy and disappointed. We are disappointed certainly for Ferrari but for the fans and for our sport," he said. The Italian team believed they had 'overwhelming' proof to trigger a review but the FIA revealed some of that was Sky Sports' television analysis carried out by Indian racer Karun Chandhok. The Indian, who raced in Formula One for now-defunct tail-end teams Hispania and Team Lotus in 2010 and 2011 without scoring a point, was apparently unaware that his opinion formed part of the evidence. "Er... so, can I send you an invoice Ferrari? I mean, lawyers send bills whether you win or lose a case so...!!," he said on Twitter. The stewards decided Chandhok's video was "new but not significant and relevant" and the "personal opinion by a third party." The ruling means that Hamilton, a five-times world champion, has his 29-point lead over teammate Valtteri Bottas confirmed. He's 62 points ahead of Vettel. Mercedes has won all seven races this season, and nine in a row in total, and are favorites to chalk up another in France on Sunday. Ferrari sporting director Laurent Mekies had said earlier that the team believed the evidence to be "quite overwhelming when it comes to establishing that Sebastian did not breach any regulations." The stewards clearly found it underwhelming. They said footage of Vettel's face camera was previously available, as were analysis of telemetry data, camera angles from the car, post-race video images and the German's witness statement. The right of review calls for a team to present significant and relevant new evidence that was not available at the time of the decision. The stewards, whose ruling is final, had sole discretion to determine whether such a new element exists.

1959 Ferrari 250 GT California sells for nearly $18M, exceeding expectations

RM Sotheby's just wrapped up its auction in New York, where it sold off a pair of gorgeous silver roadsters, with one of them selling for the incredible price of $17.99 million. That car was a 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California that we covered previously, and Sotheby's was only expecting it to go for between $14 million and $17 million. Apparently someone felt the car's rare aluminum construction and racing history was worth the extra cash. View 11 Photos The other roadster went for considerably less money but was notable because of its previous owner, late Apple CEO Steve Jobs. The car is a 2000 BMW Z8 that the tech mogul had for around three years. The final sale price only met expectations, though, at $329,500. The original auction estimate was between $300,000 and $400,000. Related Video: Featured Gallery 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider Competizione by Scaglietti View 30 Photos Image Credit: Diana Varga courtesy of RM Sotheby's, RM Sotheby's Celebrities BMW Ferrari Auctions Convertible Racing Vehicles Performance Classics bmw z8 ferrari 250 gt california

Watch the Ferrari LaFerrari get put through its paces by Top Gear and Evo

Do you know what today is? Well, besides being the anniversary of the signing of the Louisiana Purchase (thanks France!), Consumer Protection Day in Thailand and Michael Waltrip's birthday, April 30 marks the expiration of the first of two embargoes on the Ferrari LaFerrari.
That means you're probably going to see quite a bit on Ferrari's hypercar in the coming days. One of the first things we've stumbled across is this video from our friends at Top Gear. Now, this isn't Jeremy, James and Richard playing with the ultra-powerful hybrid (although it's probably only a matter of time before the LaFerrari arrives at Dunsfold), it's the TG magazine crew. It's best to think of the Top Gear video as an appetizer, though.
The main course comes from Evo, which has a far lengthier and more detailed spot, running a full 10 minutes of fun. Dickie Meaden samples the 900-plus-horsepower monster on both the Italian roads and the Fiorano test track. We won't spoil the outcome, so be sure to take a look below for both videos.