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This morning it has been announced that Caterham’s new owners could walk away from F1 and take legal action against Tony Fernandes, claiming he has not transferred his shares.
Prior to this year’s British Grand Prix, Fernandes sold Caterham to a consortium of Swiss and Middle Eastern investors, but despite the new ownership the team has continued to be dogged by reports of financial difficulties.
Earlier this week, Caterham Sports Limited (CSL) went into administration and was told told that the team’s car would not be permitted to leave the factory until “an acceptable agreement” is reached.
With the team’s participation in next weekend’s United States GP in jeopardy, the new owners have pointed the finger firmly at Fernandes.
The team released a statement on the issues currently present saying the following:-
‘The administrators of Caterham Sports Limited have been appointed on behalf of Export-Import Bank of Malaysia Berhad (Exim), a creditor of Mr Fernandes and the Caterham Group. The Buyer has no connection with Exim. Caterham Sports Ltd was a supplier company to the Caterham F1 Team.
‘Very regrettably, the administrators’ appointment has had devastating effects on the F1 Team’s activities. Since their appointment, the administrators have released various press statements which have been severely detrimental to the management of the Caterham F1 team.
‘After three months of operating the Caterham F1 Team in good faith, the Buyer is now forced to explore all its options including the withdrawal of its management team. Lawyers have been instructed by the Buyer to bring all necessary claims against all parties, including Mr Fernandes who, as an owner, will run the F1 operation.’
The statement also added that Fernandes had yet to transfer ownership of the Formula 1 team to the consortium. The team’s statement added the following:-
‘On 29 June 2014, Caterham Enterprises Ltd, Caterham (UK) Ltd and Sheikh Mohamed Nasarudin (Seller) and their shareholders Tony Fernandes and Datuk Kamarudin Bin Meranun entered into a Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with Engavest SA (Buyer) with regards to 1Malaysia Racing Team Sdn Bhd/Caterham F1 Team.
‘Since the date of the Agreement, the Seller has refused to comply with its legal obligations to transfer their shares to the Buyer. The Buyer has been left in the invidious position of funding the team without having legal title to the team it had bought. This is in total contradiction to the Seller’s press release of 3 October 2014 which stated that Mr Fernandes and his Caterham Group had no longer any connection with the Caterham F1 Team.’
From what the Caterham team have issued in their statement this morning, it is clear that there is more to this situation than we realise. It would be expected that there would be issues as the team transferred to new ownership and would be dealt with in the correct way using the right legal channels. And it would seem that there are still fundamental issues with this legally that are being dealt with at the moment and need to be sorted out as quickly as possible.
I really hope that Caterham using the legal channels do whatever they feel is necessary to sort out the issues within the team and for their best interests. Everyone who works for or who is associated with Caterham will understandably be worried about the situation and how it will progress. But all the new owners of Caterham can do is continue to work behind the scenes as they have been and working alongside the ex-owners to resolve the situation swiftly.
But most importantly, they need to continue working as hard as they can to try and save the future of the team if they can and to remain within Formula One racing as planned. And I really hope that is the case for them and the current issues are resolved within the team using the correct channels as soon as possible and put these issues behind them once and for all.
