Van der Garde drops court action, steps aside for Australian F1 Grand Prix
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E-mail Xinhua, March 14, 2015
Formula one driver Giedo van der Garde dropped his contempt of court action against his team Sauber on Saturday allowing the Swiss team to compete in this weekend's Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.
The 29-year-old Dutch driver announced he would step aside for Sauber's other contracted drivers, Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr, after immediate concerns were resolved during intense discussions on Friday night.
After the Victorian Supreme Court had agreed on Wednesday van der Garde had a legal right to drive in the season's opening race, Sauber risked having its assets seized and team principal Monisha Kaltenborn arrested if it raced any cars in Melbourne.
In a statement, van der Garde, who has a contract with Sauber to race in 2015, confirmed that he had stepped aside in time for Saturday's qualifying.
"With respect to the interest of motorsport, and F1 in particular, I have decided to give up my legal rights to race this weekend," said van der Garde on Facebook.
"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. I am confident such solution will be found."
Van der Garde had claimed he was guaranteed a race seat in the 2015 Sauber line-up after signing a contract last year when he was a test driver. Despite this, Sauber contracted two more drivers, Sweden's Ericsson and Brazil's Nasr.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled van der Garde should be allowed to drive in the opening race of the season, upholding a Swiss arbitration court's decision.
However, with Sauber having never submitted van der Garde's for an F1 licence, it was unlikely the motorsport authorities would have allowed van der Garde to pilot the car.
Whether a financial settlement can be reached between van der Garde and cash-strapped Sauber will be clearer when the two parties resume discussions next week.
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