FORMULA ONE:Lewis Hamilton will argue why he should be reinstated as winner of the Belgian Grand Prix when he addresses the FIA International Court of Appeal later today.
Hamilton spent the first two hours of the hearing in Paris listening to lawyers debate the merits of whether McLaren's protest is initially admissible.
Two hours after the race at Spa on September 7th, Hamilton was handed a retrospective 25-second drive-through penalty by the stewards for cutting a corner and gaining an advantage on leader at the time in Kimi Raikkonen.
Under FIA rules a drive-through penalty "is not susceptible to an appeal".
However, McLaren barrister Mark Philips QC, submitted that as no drive-through took place - Hamilton did not take to the pit lane for his penalty - his punishment merely relates to time only, which can be appealed against.
Philips pointed out that after last season's Japanese Grand Prix an appeal was heard when Vitantonio Liuzzi, then with Toro Rosso, was handed a 25-second time penalty after the race for passing Spyker's Adrian Sutil under waved yellow flags.
Philips, who acted on behalf of Spyker on that occasion, won that case, allowing Sutil to claim the team's only point of the season for finishing eighth.
The five judges - Xavier Conesa (Spain), Philippe Narmino (Monaco), Erich Sedelmayer (Austria), Harry Duijm (Netherlands) and Thierry Julliard (Switzerland) - will debate overnight the merits of admissibility.
If the judges allow the appeal, they will discuss the manoeuvre in question at the Bus Stop chicane at the end of lap 42 of the 44-lap race.
Hamilton has claimed he cut the chicane to avoid colliding with Raikkonen, quickly allowing any advantage back to the Finn.
However, the move was contentious as Hamilton's momentum coming out of the corner allowed him to slipstream the reigning world champion and pass him again into the subsequent La Source hairpin.
In his opening argument, Philips said: "The stewards say Lewis Hamilton cut a chicane and so gained an advantage.
"The evidence will show Lewis Hamilton gave the advantage back to Kimi Raikkonen.
"If Kimi Raikkonen had not forced him off the track he would have passed him down the straight."
The court heard a short clip of dialogue between McLaren sporting director Dave Ryan and race director Charlie Whiting at the time of the incident.
Ryan: "Do you believe that was okay? He gave the position back."
Whiting: "I believe it was. Yes."
Ryan: "You believe it was okay."
Whiting: "I believe it was okay."
That could prove crucial if the quintet of judges initially rule the appeal is admissible.
If McLaren and Hamilton win the case, the Briton will head into the final four races with a seven-point lead over Ferrari's Felipe Massa, rather than the current one point.