Berger denies new Toro Rosso is illegal

Gerhard Berger has brushed off Spyker and Williams' legal threats by insisting that Toro Rosso's plans for 2007 are legal.

The Austrian co-owner's Faenza based outfit, along with Honda satellite Super Aguri, are at the centre of a dispute over the possible use of so-called 'customer cars', even though neither have revealed their machines for this season.

Williams and Spyker have stepped up the argument by promising anything from a case of arbitration to the seeking of injunctions at the scene of the season opener in Melbourne, but Berger says he is confident that he has the governing body on his side.

"We checked very carefully on the legal side, on the FIA side," said the former grand prix winner, who with Red Bull's Dietrich Mateschitz owns Toro Rosso.

Berger told f1.com: "We have checked very carefully the wording of the Concorde Agreement, and it shows very clearly to us that what we are doing is absolutely correct — that we are inside the regulations.

"We went on a route that even if we wanted we could not go back. It is done."

Berger suggests that Spyker and Williams' motivation for pushing the issue is simply "fear" of being beaten, but a growing feeling in pit lane is that the besieged teams do intend to breach the 'spirit' of the rules by sliding through loop holes.

Even so, Berger fired back at his rivals' threats to take the matter to court.

"If they want to do so, fine, then we will fight it out," the Austrian charged.