Fernando Alonso (Left) talks with Ferrari teammate Felipe Massa (Right). (Photo: Getty Images)

That phrase clearly caught the attention of the stewards, and is going to be a key part of investigation by the World Motor Sport Council. Indeed Smedley was called to see the stewards, along with the drivers, in order to explain what he meant when he apologized. We can guess that the only thing he could have told them was that he was apologizing for not providing a faster car.

One interesting aspect to the affair is that neither Alonso nor Stefano Domenicali majored on the fact that Sebastian Vettel was not far behind – and that Massa in effect should have either gotten a move on or let Fernando past – by way of justification. It’ll be interesting if they try to use that now.

What happens next is the fascinating question, because in essence it is the role of FIA President Jean Todt to decide how and when the WMSC will deal with the matter. The next scheduled meeting in Como is in early September, just before the Italian GP.

Clearly there will be some urgency to get it dealt with earlier, but it could prove hard for Todt to convene the WMSC in the August break when its various members will inevitably be on holiday. However, he has already gained something of a reputation for wanting to resolve things quickly.

This is something of a step into the unknown for the Frenchman, as this is the first big F1 scandal to land in his lap, whereas such events had become a matter of routine for his predecessor Max Mosley.

Then, of course, there is the complication of his past involvement with Ferrari, his specific involvement in team orders that led to the implementation of Article 39.1 in the first place, and, of course, his personal relationship with Massa, who was first brought into the team by Todt.

He’s going to have to walk a tightrope as this affair unfolds. It’s going to be very hard for him to be seen as impartial, however honorable his intentions.

Earlier this year Todt lost his rag with me after I’d queried him at a press conference over the Stefan GP affair, based on the fact that his son Nicolas managed a driver who had the chance of being a test driver for the team.

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He didn’t like the suggestion that he had been influenced in any way by having an inside track on what was going on, even though I had actually made the point in print that he’d made the correct call in not allowing the team in.

Understandably, he’s ultra-sensitive to such scenarios, but given the many connections that he’s made during his long career, and his son’s own high-profile involvement, it was inevitable that there would be perceived conflicts of interest.

Todt has made it clear that he will not play the sort of “hands-on” role that Mosley used to play, and once WMSC proceedings start, he will take a step back. But the fact is that he is in the loop. Indeed he was apparently a visitor to the stewards’ room in Bahrain, Monaco and Silverstone this year, presumably having a good look at what was going on. Intriguingly, the last two races also featured controversial incidents in which he took an interest.

The other fascinating aspect to all this is that it comes on the back of the safety car saga in Valencia and the drive-through penalty that Alonso received in Silverstone. Ferrari made its displeasure with decisions in race control only too clear, and now for a third race in a row, Fernando and the team have found themselves in the middle of controversy.

After perhaps saying too much in Valencia, Alonso has since tried to avoid stirring up trouble by blandly repeating a mantra along the lines of, “the stewards are always right.”

I wonder if he really believes that today.

Adam Cooper notched up his 25th season as a racing journalist in 2009. Born in London, England, he saw his first F1 race at age 10 in 1976. He began freelancing for Autosport magazine in 1985 and was on the fulltime staff from 1987-92. He then went freelance again, initially spending two years in Japan before following the 1994 Champcar series from a base in Indianapolis. He has not missed a Grand Prix since Suzuka ‘94, a run that has extended to Abu Dhabi ’09. Adam has written books about Eddie Irvine, Piers Courage and Michael Schumacher and hosts a race preview show on Sirius XM. He has written about F1 for SPEEDtv.com since 2005. Check out Adam's Blog or follow him on Twitter