Nigel Stepney
Encyclopedia
Nigel Stepney is a British
-born former Formula One
mechanic
. He started in Formula One as a mechanic at Shadow
in 1977, then followed Elio de Angelis
to Lotus
before moving to Benetton
for the late 1980s and early 90s and then to Ferrari
with Michael Schumacher
, Rory Byrne
and Ross Brawn
. He was Chief Mechanic at Ferrari and later became Race and Test Technical Manager.
At the 2000 Spanish Grand Prix
, Stepney was injured during a pit stop for Michael Schumacher
's car. This occurred when the German accidentally drove away with the fuel rig briefly attached to the car, knocking Stepney down. He suffered badly damaged ligaments to his ankle. On 1 February 2007 it was reported on the Internet that Stepney was unhappy with Ferrari's technical restructuring and that he wanted to leave the team, seeking a new challenge. However, Ferrari's spokesman, Luca Colajanni, reported on Pitpass' website that he had a contract until the end of the 2007 season and that he was therefore staying at Ferrari.
On 23 February 2007, Stepney was promoted to Head of the performance development, meaning that he would no longer have to attend races.
Stepney is currently team manager for Sumo Power
.
district attorney, initiated after Ferrari reportedly made a formal complaint. No reason for the investigation was given, with the specifics of the complaint not being released to the public. A Ferrari spokesman told Reuters "It is not related to any event; it is related to his behaviour." It was later reported that this was due to the team finding a white residue powder in the fuel tanks of their cars post the Monaco Grand Prix
, where they finished third and eighth. He was also accused of selling Ferrari parts to competing teams. He has since denied the accusations and has claimed to be the victim of a "dirty tricks campaign".
On 3 July Stepney was dismissed by Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro. Later the same day Ferrari announced it was taking legal action against Stepney and a McLaren engineer named by Autosport.com as Mike Coughlan
; A Ferrari press release stated:
On his return from holiday in the Philippines
on 5 July, Stepney was interrogated by the Italian
police as part of the industrial espionage
case. On 6 July Honda F1
released a statement confirming that Stepney and Coughlan approached the team regarding "job opportunities" in June 2007. Since the revelation of Coughlan's involvement in the affair McLaren provided a full set of drawings and development documents to the FIA, detailing all updates made to the team's chassis since the incident occurred at the end of April.
On 4 October 2007, in a complete twist to the 2007 Formula One espionage controversy
, Nigel Stepney issued a statement claiming that he had received key information about McLaren's set-up, pit-stops, weight distribution and other aspects of various parts of their car when he was still a Ferrari employee and said that Ferrari had gotten off lightly.
On 7 March 2008 the FIA issued a statement urging teams and those holding FIA issued licenses not to hire Nigel Stepney "Without conducting appropriate due diligence regarding his suitability for involvement in international motor sport".
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
-born former Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
mechanic
Mechanic
A mechanic is a craftsman or technician who uses tools to build or repair machinery.Many mechanics are specialized in a particular field such as auto mechanics, bicycle mechanics, motorcycle mechanics, boiler mechanics, general mechanics, industrial maintenance mechanics , air conditioning and...
. He started in Formula One as a mechanic at Shadow
Shadow Racing Cars
Shadow Racing Cars was a Formula One and sports car racing team, founded and initially based in the United States although later Formula One operations were run from Britain.-1971-1972: Early years in CanAm series:...
in 1977, then followed Elio de Angelis
Elio de Angelis
Elio de Angelis was an Italian racing driver who participated in Formula One between and , racing for the Shadow, Lotus and Brabham teams. He was killed during testing at the Paul Ricard circuit at Le Castellet in 1986...
to Lotus
Team Lotus
Team Lotus was the motorsport sister company of English sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. The team ran cars in many motorsport series including Formula One, Formula Two, Formula Ford, Formula Junior, IndyCar and sports car racing...
before moving to Benetton
Benetton Formula
Benetton Formula Ltd., commonly referred to simply as Benetton, was a Formula One constructor that participated from to . The team was owned by the Benetton family who run a worldwide chain of clothing stores of the same name. In 2000 the team was purchased by Renault, but competed as Benetton for...
for the late 1980s and early 90s and then to Ferrari
Scuderia Ferrari
Scuderia Ferrari is the racing team division of the Ferrari automobile marque. The team currently only races in Formula One but has competed in numerous classes of motorsport since its formation in 1929, including sportscar racing....
with Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher is a German Formula One racing driver for the Mercedes GP team. Famous for his eleven-year spell with Ferrari, Schumacher is a seven-time World Champion and is widely regarded as the greatest F1 driver of all time...
, Rory Byrne
Rory Byrne
Rory Byrne is a South African engineer and car designer, most famous for being the chief designer at the Benetton and Scuderia Ferrari Formula One teams....
and Ross Brawn
Ross Brawn
Ross James Brawn OBE is an English motorsport engineer and Formula One team principal. He has worked for a number of Formula One teams, serving as the technical director of the championship-winning Benetton and Ferrari teams. He took a sabbatical from the sport in 2007 but returned to F1 for the...
. He was Chief Mechanic at Ferrari and later became Race and Test Technical Manager.
At the 2000 Spanish Grand Prix
2000 Spanish Grand Prix
The 2000 Spanish Grand Prix was a Formula One race held on May 7, 2000 at the Circuit de Catalunya.__FORCETOC__- Report :Qualifying had Michael Schumacher on pole position, with Mika Häkkinen second, Rubens Barrichello third, David Coulthard fourth, Ralf Schumacher in fifth and Jacques Villeneuve...
, Stepney was injured during a pit stop for Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher is a German Formula One racing driver for the Mercedes GP team. Famous for his eleven-year spell with Ferrari, Schumacher is a seven-time World Champion and is widely regarded as the greatest F1 driver of all time...
's car. This occurred when the German accidentally drove away with the fuel rig briefly attached to the car, knocking Stepney down. He suffered badly damaged ligaments to his ankle. On 1 February 2007 it was reported on the Internet that Stepney was unhappy with Ferrari's technical restructuring and that he wanted to leave the team, seeking a new challenge. However, Ferrari's spokesman, Luca Colajanni, reported on Pitpass' website that he had a contract until the end of the 2007 season and that he was therefore staying at Ferrari.
On 23 February 2007, Stepney was promoted to Head of the performance development, meaning that he would no longer have to attend races.
Stepney is currently team manager for Sumo Power
Sumo power
Sumo Power is a British car tuning company based in Rye, East Sussex, England. Founded in 2002, Sumo Power specializes in custom tuning Japanese imports, including the Nissan Skyline GT-R and Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, as well as the importation and sale of many Japanese performance parts,...
.
Espionage allegations
On 21 June it was reported that Stepney was the subject of a criminal inquiry by the ModenaModena
Modena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
district attorney, initiated after Ferrari reportedly made a formal complaint. No reason for the investigation was given, with the specifics of the complaint not being released to the public. A Ferrari spokesman told Reuters "It is not related to any event; it is related to his behaviour." It was later reported that this was due to the team finding a white residue powder in the fuel tanks of their cars post the Monaco Grand Prix
Monaco Grand Prix
The Monaco Grand Prix is a Formula One race held each year on the Circuit de Monaco. Run since 1929, it is widely considered to be one of the most important and prestigious automobile races in the world, alongside the Daytona 500, Indianapolis 500, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans...
, where they finished third and eighth. He was also accused of selling Ferrari parts to competing teams. He has since denied the accusations and has claimed to be the victim of a "dirty tricks campaign".
On 3 July Stepney was dismissed by Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro. Later the same day Ferrari announced it was taking legal action against Stepney and a McLaren engineer named by Autosport.com as Mike Coughlan
Mike Coughlan
Mike Coughlan is a race car designer. On 3 May 2011 it was announced that Coughlan will become the Chief Designer for Williams F1...
; A Ferrari press release stated:
On his return from holiday in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
on 5 July, Stepney was interrogated by the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
police as part of the industrial espionage
Industrial espionage
Industrial espionage, economic espionage or corporate espionage is a form of espionage conducted for commercial purposes instead of purely national security purposes...
case. On 6 July Honda F1
Honda F1
Honda Racing F1 Team was a Formula One team run by Japanese car manufacturer Honda, from 1964 to 1968 and from 2006 to 2008. Honda's involvement in F1 began with the 1964 season; their withdrawal in 1968 was precipitated by the death of Honda driver Jo Schlesser during the 1968 French Grand Prix. ...
released a statement confirming that Stepney and Coughlan approached the team regarding "job opportunities" in June 2007. Since the revelation of Coughlan's involvement in the affair McLaren provided a full set of drawings and development documents to the FIA, detailing all updates made to the team's chassis since the incident occurred at the end of April.
On 4 October 2007, in a complete twist to the 2007 Formula One espionage controversy
2007 Formula One espionage controversy
The 2007 Formula One espionage controversy, also known as "Spygate," or "Stepneygate" involves allegations that the McLaren Formula One team was passed confidential technical information from the Ferrari team, and that the Renault F1 team was passed confidential technical information from the...
, Nigel Stepney issued a statement claiming that he had received key information about McLaren's set-up, pit-stops, weight distribution and other aspects of various parts of their car when he was still a Ferrari employee and said that Ferrari had gotten off lightly.
Investigation of Stepney
On 22 January 2008 it was announced that Stepney had been recruited by Gigawave, a manufacturer of on-board racing car camera systems who are also fielding a team in the 2008 FIA GT Championship, as Director of Race Technologies.On 7 March 2008 the FIA issued a statement urging teams and those holding FIA issued licenses not to hire Nigel Stepney "Without conducting appropriate due diligence regarding his suitability for involvement in international motor sport".
RECOMMENDATION RE: NIGEL STEPNEY
07.03.2008
In its investigations of last year regarding the unauthorised use of intellectual property within Formula One, the FIA heard allegations that Mr. Nigel Stepney, then employed by Ferrari, had passed confidential Ferrari information to an employee of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. Mr. Stepney has admitted this allegation and apologised to the FIA, though he disputes the seriousness and extent of his involvement. As Stepney is not a licence-holder of the FIA, no formal action may be taken against him under the International Sporting Code (though the FIA is co-operating with the Italian police, who are investigating Mr. Stepney's actions). As a matter of good order, the FIA recommends to its licensees that they do not professionally collaborate with Mr. Stepney without conducting appropriate due diligence regarding his suitability for involvement in international motor sport. This recommendation stands until 1 July 2009. However, the restriction was lifted on 6 February 2009, with FIA President Max Mosley claiming that Stepney and Coughlan had only been "minor players" in the scandal. On 27 August 2010 Stepney was appointed team manager of the Sumo PowerSumo powerSumo Power is a British car tuning company based in Rye, East Sussex, England. Founded in 2002, Sumo Power specializes in custom tuning Japanese imports, including the Nissan Skyline GT-R and Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, as well as the importation and sale of many Japanese performance parts,...
team competing in the FIA GT1 World ChampionshipFIA GT1 World ChampionshipThe FIA GT1 World Championship is a world championship sports car racing series developed by the SRO Group and regulated by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . It features multiple grand tourer race cars based on production road cars and conforming with the GT1 regulations competing in...
.