The WMSC convened earlier today to decide the fate of McLaren in the wake of Melbourne’s Liargate scandal.

Team principal Martin Whitmarsh appeared alone at the hearing, opting not to surround himself with the usual flock of lawyers most teams would in such circumstances. He’d also previously written a letter of apology to Max Mosley directly to apologize for the team’s behaviour, and was quite willing to own up to the mistakes the team had made and the subsequent charges being brought against them.

Following McLaren’s dismissal of former sporting director Dave Ryan for his part in this scandal as well as the abjectly apologetic press conference Lewis Hamilton held in its wake, the WMSC cited “culture change” as their deciding factor. The team have since received a suspended three-race ban that will only go into effect should McLaren bring the sport into “disrepute” again, either through new evidence emerging in this case or another such incident occurring within the next 12 months.

[ITV F1]