Formula 1 punters were left breathing a sigh of relief this week when McLaren were spared punishment in the Drivers' Championship for their part in the Ferrari spying row.

There were fears that Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton would be thrown out of the 2007 campaign as punishment for McLaren owning Ferrari intellectual property rights and, as rumours spread on Thursday, Raikonnen traded as low as 1.6 with Betfair.

However, though the FIA did come down heavily on the British team by throwing them out of the Constructors' Championship and fining them a staggering £50m, both drivers are free to continue contesting one of the closest Drivers' Championships in years.

It now seems that Alonso will almost certainly leave McLaren at the end of the season as further light has been shed on his rift with Dennis and Hamilton. It has emerged that the Spaniard had been in possession of highly confidential technical information about Ferrari, as evidenced by emails sent by him to test driver Pedro de la Rosa.

Dennis reported the matter to FIA President Max Mosely after a row with Alonso, who is alleged to have threatened to reveal the information to the FIA before Dennis called his bluff.