New AlphaTauri driver Nyck de Vries has found himself embroiled in legal drama in recent weeks, with a huge supporter of his career believing that he is entitled to a large percentage of the Dutchman’s income.
Back in 2018, Dutch financier Jeroen Schothorst provided De Vries with a loan of $250,000 through his company Investrand, in order to help the driver secure a seat in Formula 2 with Prema.
The loan contract had a three percent annual interest rate but also reportedly featured a much more unusual clause.
According to reports, the contract obligated De Vries to to give half of his F1 related earnings to Schothorst, a clause which would expire should the Dutchman have failed to secure a race seat by 2022.
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The legal battle stems from the fact that Nyck de Vries stood in for Alex Albon in Monza last season while the Thai driver was suffering with appendicitis, something which Schothorst believes counts as a race seat.
This would mean that half of anything De Vries earns from F1 will be sent to the Dutch financier, as a result of the clause in the loan contract.
Following a court case in Amsterdam, the AlphaTauri driver has been told by the judge that he does not owe Schothorst anything, as his one-off appearance in Monza does not count as him holding a race seat.
“It is true that he participated in F1 on 11 September 2022 at the Italian Grand Prix, but he did so as a reserve driver,” stated the summary judgement report from the case.
“He was not contracted as a race driver at that time, he was merely filling in for another driver with appendicitis.”
De Vries has now explained that he never expected to lose the legal battle with Investrand, having followed his contract with them to the letter.
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“I have fulfilled all my obligations towards Investrand under the loan agreement and have always provided him with all the information he was entitled to under the loan agreement,” said the Dutchman.
“As far as I am concerned, the fact that the judge ruled in my favour was in line with my expectations.
“Hopefully things will now die down so that I can focus on preparing for the Formula 1 season.”