MONZA, Italy, Sept 9, 2007 (AFP) - McLaren team boss Ron Dennis has hit back at Italian prosecutors´ decision to serve the team legal writs at the paddock prior to qualifying for Sunday´s Formula One Grand Prix in Monza.

Spain´s double world champion Fernando Alonso secured pole position for McLaren ahead of championship-leading teammate Lewis Hamilton on Saturday, but their joy was tempered by the earlier arrival of police.

McLaren are facing allegations of illegally obtaining technical information on rivals Ferrari, and the affair which has been dubbed ´spygate´ looks far from over.

But ahead of a potentially crucial meeting by the sport´s world ruling body the FIA this week, team boss Dennis hit out at prosecutors whom he says had tried to shake up his team ahead of qualifying for Sunday´s race.

"McLaren was not charged with anything," said the team in a statement on Sunday.

"We strongly suspect that the nature and the timing of this wholly unnecessary contact, just before the start of qualifying, was to disrupt our preparation for this important session and Thursday´s world motor sport council hearing.

"McLaren is completely confident that were any proceedings of this type ever to be brought we would be completely exonerated."

The team issued its statement in reaction to widespread and inaccurate reporting of Saturday´s events when the team were merely advised that Italian magistrates were including them within their range of inquiries into the so-called industrial espionage story following the leaking of a 780-pages Ferrari technical dossier to McLaren earlier this year.

A spokesman for the team said: "The team was informed on Saturday evening by Modena magistrates that they are involved in an ongoing investigation."

It was confirmed that the named individuals under investigation included McLaren team chief Dennis, former Ferrari engineer Nigel Stepney, suspended McLaren chief designer Mike Coughlan, McLaren chief executive Martin Whitmarsh and senior McLaren employees Paddy Lowe, Jonathan Neale and Rob Taylor.

It was reported, but not confirmed, that all of them might in due course be served an "avviso di garanzia" by the prosecutor in Modena, a legal notification that the person is suspected of a crime and is being investigated. This does not mean necessarily that it will lead to a charge.

A similar investigation involving the Simtek and Williams Formula One teams followed the deaths of Austrian Roland Ratzenberger and Brazilian Ayrton Senna at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix at Imola.

The investigation, and the ´spy story´, centres on allegations that Coughlan received the dossier of technical information, which was found in his home in England following a search, from Stepney.

Coughlan has been suspended and Stepney dismissed. Stepney has denied the accusations against him.