Following Jean Todt's recent blast at paddock rumourmongers who are suggesting that Ferrari is cheating, technical director Ross Brawn has also lashed out, warning that the Italian team will track them down.

Basically there have been two stories doing the rounds in recent weeks. One suggests that Ferrari has been (illegally) using two different tyre compounds during race weekends, by merely changing the FIA's official bar code stickers from one type of tyre to the other. This story has been dismissed as utter nonsense by Ferrari and the FIA, which insists that stringent checks are carried out to prevent such deceit.

The latest rumour has the Italian team using a special spray on the tyres, which gives added grip.

"Why would we want to do it?" asked a clearly frustrated Brawn yesterday. "We have a fantastic car with great tyres, the best driver, so we are not going to mess around with stuff like that.

"It's not something you could do discreetly," he added, "and it's illegal so we just wouldn't do it.

"I don't know where these stories come from," he admitted, "Michelin say they are not doing it, we are saying we're not doing it, and we're the people who should know, and the FIA are saying we're not doing it."

Allegations of cheating go back to the beginning of motorsport, but in recent times, as Ferrari has grown ever more successful, the allegations have intensified. If it's not the Italian outfit's rivals that point the finger, it's members of the media.

"It used to be traction control," said Brawn. "That was the big unprovable that a car going quickest had traction control but that myth was exploded and now the new one is special tyres.

"I think there are people who look for easy reasons, and there are none, for the success of Ferrari," he continued. "It has been achieved with a group of people who have put a massive effort into getting there. People always want to look for an easy reason and sometimes cover their own backsides because they have to go back to their board of directors and explain why they are not winning races. It's an easy thing to say 'we're not winning because they are doing something they shouldn't be doing'. It's a very easy excuse to make.

"It is frustrating, but unfortunately that's the nature of Formula One."