STRAIGHT TALK
WHEN CONTRACTS BECOME A LITTLE COMPLICATED...
Mark Gallagher on F1 contract negotiation headaches
With Lewis Hamilton brake-tested by COVID-19 and George Russell testing positive for talent, the Sakhir Grand Prix prompted much debate about driver contracts in that calm, knowledgeable arena known as ‘social media’.
Opinions centred around suggestions that Mercedes should sack Valtteri Bottas in favour of the man whom he outqualified by 26 milliseconds or – shock horror – the notion that Toto Wolff could slash his driver budget by opting for Russell over seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton.
If it passed Toto’s mind that he should sign all three of them in tribute to one of Monisha Kaltenborn’s less desired legacies, I’m sure his brain will have moved that thought straight to trash. Sauber’s Kaltenborn, it should be remembered, turned up in Melbourne in 2015 with Marcus Ericsson, Felipe Nasr and Giedo van der Garde each holding valid race contracts, and Adrian Sutil still embroilled in a legal dispute with the team over his existing contract for the season.
There followed an excruciating court case, played
Did George Russell’s Sakhir performance perhaps hand Mercedes an extra bargaining chip in its negotiations with Lewis Hamilton? out in front of the media, resulting in the State of Victoria’s Supreme Court confirming that Van der Garde was legally entitled to a seat.
Kaltenborn’s motivation for signing Mssrs Ericsson and Nasr was founded upon their talent for bringing more moolah to the table that the lesser-sponsored Dutchman. While her efforts to shore up Sauber’s finances were laudable, they weren’t legal. Van der Garde could have taken things further, but didn’t, accepting a financial settlement and opting to leave F1’s world of sharp practices behind.
That wasn’t even the first time in recent memory a team turned up to a race with three drivers aiming to squeeze into two cockpits. At the 2010 British Grand Prix, Hispania Racing Team boss Colin Kolles accepted a bank transfer to run Sakon Yamamoto, notwithstanding the fact Bruno Senna and Karun Chandhok were already looking forward to their own Silverstone outings.
Boarding the flight to London, Kolles was quite naturally fretting about how to solve this three-into-two conundrum, but he need not have worried. Fate was smiling kindly upon him.
Upon landing, the HRT boss found an email, inadvertently sent to his phone by one of Senna’s advisors, describing him in less than flattering terms. Sensing an opportunity, Kolles played the wounded party, ignored the apologies of Senna’s associates and used a contractual detail to drop him for the race.
While being one of three contracted drivers vying for two seats is not ideal, however, much worse is to be fully out of contract. The world is full of drivers waiting to grab your seat.
It was decidedly strange, therefore, for Mercedes and Red Bull to leave Abu Dhabi in mid-december with one driver opening apiece. Alex Albon was given no option by Red Bull but, for Lewis Hamilton, opting to delay the negotiation of a new agreement appeared to tempt Fate.
Hamilton may have intended to finalise his Mercedes deal by Christmas, but more than one driver manager expressed surprise, particularly since Russell’s Sakhir outing handed Wolff an additional card to play.
The late Mark Mccormick, founder of the IMG sports management company, once said, “the windows of opportunity open and close with dazzling rapidity. I constantly… remind people to seize the moment.”
It felt like Lewis’s best moment was postturkey, with the drivers’ title secured and a fine performance fresh in everyone’s mind.
One more reason why, next to their helmet and the Halo, a quick driver’s best security comes in the form of a good lawyer with impeccable timing.