Reports suggest that McLaren is seeking between £20m – £30m in damages from Alex Palou for breaching his contract with them.
The Spanish racer has been served with relevant legal documents, issued by a UK court.
McLaren will be seeking restitution from both Palou and his racing entity ALPA Racing USA.
Palou chose to join ALPA Racing USA next year, despite having put pen to paper with McLaren.
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Though the court documents have not been made public, a source has leaked details regarding the lawsuit to the press.
The damages McLaren is seeking include a salary advance paid to the Spanish driver ahead of his joining the team in 2024.
They also include various investments the F1 team had in place for his year-long placement as a test and reserve driver.
These include private test sessions and his FP1 debut at the US Grand Prix last October.
While McLaren is now the one seeking restitution against Palou, the situation was far different a year ago – when this legal tangle began.
At that time, the Spanish youngster rejected the American outfit Chip Ganassi Racing in favour of McLaren.
Chip Ganassi insisted that Palou honour his contract with them and its driver’s racing entity ALPA Racing USA.
Palou has had a change of heart and no longer wishes to join the Woking-based F1 outfit for the 2024 season.
Unlike Chip Ganassi, McLaren seemingly has no wish to fight for the services of the 26-year-old anymore.
Instead, they are focusing on securing financial reparations for the breach of contract he has incurred.
Chip Ganassi is an American businessman, former racing driver, current team owner and member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.
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His team, Chip Ganassi Racing, is named after himself.
Ganassi’s teams compete in the IndyCar Series, WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, FIA World Endurance Championship, and Extreme E.
With the departure of Marcus Ericsson for rivals Andretti Autosport, Chip Ganassi Racing is in need of the talents of Alex Palou.