05/03/2015
NEWS STORY
Dutch racer Giedo Van der Garde has launched a legal action seeking a drive for Sauber in the season opening Australian Grand Prix.
Van der Garde, the Swiss outfit's reserve driver in 2014, claims he was offered a full race seat for 2015 in mid-2014. However, the team reneged on the deal, whilst also dropping its then drivers - Adrian Sutil and Esteban Gutierrez - for an all-new line-up, Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr.
Documents lodged by Van der Garde with Victoria’s Supreme Court claim that the Dutchman was unfairly dismissed by the Hinwil outfit.
"In early November 20l4, Mr Van de Garde was informed by Sauber's Chief Executive Officer, Ms Monisha Kaltenborn, that Sauber's two seats had been given to other drivers and that, as a consequence, Mr van der Garde would not have a place as a driver in the team in 2015," the documents claim.
"The Respondent was ordered to refrain from taking any action the effect of which would be to deprive Mr van der Garde of his entitlement to participate in the 2015 Formula One Season as one of Sauber's two nominated race drivers."
It's understood that Van der Garde has previously taken the case to the Arbitration Institution in Switzerland, which subsequently that the team should retain him.