MARANELLO, Italy -- Ferrari has fired a British technician following an internal investigation into attempted sabotage before the Monaco Grand Prix.
"All I can say is that Nigel Stepney is no longer our employee," Ferrari spokesman Luca Colajanni said Tuesday.
The Italian Formula One team has also filed a criminal complaint against Stepney, who was responsible for team performance.
A mysterious powder reportedly was found on the gas tanks of cars belonging to Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen on May 21, six days before the Monaco race.
The parts were replaced before the race and the powder was sent to the police to be examined.
Massa finished third in the race and Raikkonen was eighth.
Stepney reportedly was disappointed that he was not promoted to technical director when Ross Brawn left the team after last season. Stepney criticized Ferrari in an interview last month with a British newspaper and the team responded by not sending him to races anymore.
Raikkonen and Massa finished first and second respectively in the French Grand Prix on Sunday to cut McLaren-Mercedes' lead to 25 points in the team standings after eight of 17 races.
McLaren drivers Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso are 1-2 in the driver's standings, while Massa and Raikkonen are third and fourth.
