Full Throttle

McLaren and Ferrari, once the most bitter of Formula One rivals, are forging ever closer ties off the track as teams present a united front to the sport’s rulers.

Ferrari spokesman Luca Colajanni spent a day at McLaren’s Woking factory on Thursday, meeting team boss Ron Dennis and other staff.

“If you had told me a year ago that I would be doing this I would not have believed you,” he told reporters at a media dinner co-hosted by the two teams.

McLaren were fined a record $100 million in 2007 and stripped of all their constructors’ points for their involvement in a spying controversy over leaked Ferrari technical data they had in their possession. Champions Ferrari also started legal action against their rivals, with Dennis and other executives questioned by Italian police. The action was later dropped after a McLaren apology.

Since then, the climate has changed with Jean Todt handing over as Ferrari boss to Stefano Domenicali while Dennis is due to step down as McLaren principal on March 1 to make way for Martin Whitmarsh.

The Formula One Teams Association (FOTA) was set up last July to represent the teams in talks with the FIA and commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

FOTA is headed by Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo, with Dennis and Whitmarsh visiting the Italian team’s Maranello factory for a meeting last season as the urgent need for cost cutting became apparent.

Montezemolo, who has criticised Ecclestone’s running of the sport, described Dennis earlier this month as “a first-class person from a first-class team” and said Formula One needed great competition on the track and great unity off it.

While FOTA have agreed significant savings with the FIA for this season and beyond, they want Ecclestone to hand over far more of the sport’s revenues to them than the 50 per cent they currently receive.

Dennis told reporters that McLaren and Ferrari were “working extremely closely together” and he would devote more of his time to FOTA activities.