F1 Driver Who Sued Sauber Will Not Race In Australia

Giedo van der Garde will not race for Sauber at this Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix. The Dutch driver sued the team, claiming he had a valid contract to drive in 2015 and had been unfairly dismissed.

He took legal action in a bid to claim either Marcus Ericsson or Felipe Nasr’s seats on this year’s grid. The Victorian Supreme Court in Australia ruled in his favour on Wednesday, but Sauber appealed the decision. This was rejected on Thursday.

However, the case was far from over. Van der Garde launched more legal action with a Contempt of Court Application, referring to the fact that Sauber had not complied with the order to allow him to race or taken steps to make it happen.

If the court found Sauber was in contempt of not complying to the ruling, a sequestration order would have followed, which could have seen the team’s assets seized. Van der Garde’s lawyer even said that a last resort would be prison time for Sauber team principal Monisha Kaltenborn.

However, this action ended on Saturday, with van der Garde giving up his rights to race in Australia. However, talks will continue next week to find a solution.

Nasr and Ericsson will race for Sauber at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday. They qualified 11th and 16th on the grid, with Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg locking out the front row of the grid for Mercedes.

Van der Garde said:

“With respect to the interest of motorsport, and F1 in particular, I have decided to give up my legal rights to race this weekend at the Melbourne Grand Prix. As I am a passionate race driver this decision has been very difficult for me.

“However I also wish to respect the interest of the FIA, Sauber Motorsport, as well as Nasr and Ericsson. My management will continue talks with Sauber early next week to find a mutually acceptable solution for the current situation that has now arisen. I am confident such solution will be found and I will inform the media once done.”