Image courtesy of Sauber F1
Giedo van der Garde has triumphed over Sauber in his legal battle for a race seat in Melbourne, after the Victorian Supreme Court ruled in his favour.
Following a successful hearing at a Swiss arbitral tribunal, the Dutchman took Sauber to the courts in Australia claiming that he is in possession of a valid contract to race with the team for the 2015 Formula 1 season.
The hearing took place on Monday, with the verdict being delivered by Justice Croft at 10am local time on Wednesday.
Now van der Garde, who has been training throughout the winter, is looking forward to competing in the season ahead.
“I’m very fit and very strong,” said the Dutchman. “I’m looking forward to going back to the team and we’ll work hard to do our best for this weekend. I’m the fittest ever, I’ve been training the last three months flat out, and I’m looking forward to going back to the team. I had a very good relationship, I still have a very good relation with the team. I’m looking forward to racing this weekend.”
The Sauber team now faces a tough decision over which of their contracted race drivers, Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr, will remain for Melbourne.
When asked about the dilemma regarding Ericsson and Nasr, van der Garde said: “It’s up to them what they are going to do, and up to the team. It’s not my thing.
“I’m happy that we won the case, and that we stand here. Now I’m looking forward to getting back to business.”
Monisha Kaltenborn, the team principal for Sauber, expressed her anguish over the decision, and reiterated her concerns over safety.
“We are disappointed with this decision and now need to take time to understand what it means and the impact it will have on the start of our season. What we cannot do is jeopardise the safety of our team, or any other driver on the track, by having an unprepared driver in a car that has now been tailored to two other assigned drivers.”
