Just like last year’s rear double deck diffuser that caused immense controversy when three teams turned up with it at the season opening race in Melbourne, the FIA declared the new ‘F’ vent system produced by McLaren ahead of the 2010 opener in Bahrain this weekend as legal, a decision that Renault’s managing director, Bob Bell, has ridiculed as ‘a joke’.

According to Bell, McLaren’s system is illegal and the FIA has now caused another situation that will see a mot of money needing to be spent when they are meant to cutting costs as much as possible.

"It is fundamentally clear that the McLaren wing design is totally illegal – and they have driven a cart horse through the spirit of the rules and regulations,” he told the BBC. "I think that it is ridiculous in this era where we are all trying to save money.”

“We are restricted by the number of people that we can bring to the track, with mechanics working ridiculous hours at night to prepare the car. Now we have just opened another arms race that will cost us all a lot of money. It's just a joke. I think the governing body needs to be more responsible in decisions like this."