McLaren’s Martin Whitmarsh will face the World Motor Sport Council tomorrow to answer charges in relation to the lying scandal that broke after the season opening Australian Grand Prix with Lewis Hamilton and Dave Ryan lying to race stewards about the incidents surrounding Jarno Trulli’s overtaking manoeuvre on the McLaren under safety car conditions.

Despite already being penalized with Hamilton being stripped of points from the opening race and Dave Ryan losing his job after thirty five years of service, the FIA called them to attend an extraordinary meeting of the World Council where they could face even heavier sanctions, such as exclusion from the championship.

Mercedes has already let it be known that if a heavy sanction is brought down on their team, the second time in three years, then they would have to reconsider their participation in the sport and possibly even drop back to being an engine supplier only. This means there could be extreme ramifications should the team suffer another heavy punishment, ramifications that could shock the Formula One world to its foundations.

One such fallout from this could be that, especially in the current economic climate, other engine manufacturers could see Mercedes departure as an opening and follow them out the door and that is definitely something Formula One does not want to have happen.

Therefore, FOM chief and a board member on the WMSC, Bernie Ecclestone, has now hinted that tomorrow’s meeting will see a fair and just punishment for the team’s actions, definitely nothing as draconian as the 100 million Euro fine handed down in the ‘spygate’ affair on 07.

“I am absolutely positive that Mercedes would like to look upon this as fair for everybody and, if there is any punishment to be meted out, it will be fair and I am sure they would support that,” Ecclestone said in the Times.  “I don't think they would decide to leave Formula One because somebody had done something wrong and been punished. I think they will be very fair.”

McLaren will not go into the hearing attempting to disprove the allegations, in fact Martin Whitmarsh has already sent a letter to the sport’s governing body admitting their mistake and apologizing profusely for it. Lewis Hamilton has also publicly apologized and the word in the Formula one paddock at the moment is that the FIA does not wish to punish the driver, but a fine and possible race ban for the team could be on the cards as a punishment for bringing the sport into disrepute.

The WMSC sits tomorrow and a decision should be known soon afterward.