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HOME FAVOURITE: Hamilton will try to put all the distractions aside and concentrate on maintaining his eight-out-of-eight top-three finish record at the British Grand Prix on Sunday. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
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LONDON - THE Formula One championship's leading driver, Lewis Hamilton, can breathe a bit easier.
The F1's supremo, Bernie Ecclestone, has insisted that there was 'no way' points will be deducted from the McLaren rookie, who leads the drivers' standings on 64 points - 14 more than teammate Fernando Alonso.
This is regardless of the outcome of the shocking spy scandal that has engulfed Hamilton's team and the sport.
But there is the possibility that McLaren may be thrown out of the championship this season.
Ferrari have accused their former top English mechanic Nigel Stepney of leaking secret technical information to McLaren's chief designer Mike Coughlan.
Hundreds of pages of confidential information were found during a police raid at Coughlan's house in Britain earlier this week.
Ferrari suspected that Stepney acted out of malice because he was angry at being overlooked for Ross Brawn's job when the pit guru stepped down last October.
Motor racing's governing body, the FIA, will launch an investigation.
The punishments range from a points deduction or a fine, to McLaren being thrown out of this year's championship.
That will ruin the season, a possibility that Ecclestone wants to avoid at all costs.
He does not see the case going so far as to see McLaren disqualified, and insisted Hamilton would not suffer.
He said: 'Firstly, the FIA have got to prove that if any information was given by Ferrari, it was used.
'And, if it was used, did it affect the performance of the car and, if so, where?
'In that case, they could take away constructors' points from the team.
'But there is no way it would affect the driver. It is nothing to do with the driver - he's got a car, he gets into the car; he has no idea.'
McLaren's claim that no one apart from Coughlan, who has been suspended, was involved was greeted with scepticism by some paddock insiders, reported The Times.
The team also insisted that no Ferrari intellectual property has been incorporated into their cars, and have invited the FIA to conduct a review.
Ferrari, however, have noted how McLaren's strongest performances came soon after the leak at the end of April.
'We don't know McLaren's side of things or if the guy who allegedly took the drawings did it personally?' said Ecclestone.
'Or is McLaren involved? Ron Dennis, the team principal, says it's not McLaren - he's completely transparent - and if it's the guy himself, did he buy them? Did he know they were stolen?'
The scandal has cast a pall over Sunday's British Grand Prix at Silverstone, where Hamilton will be backed by an 85,000 home crowd.
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