McLaren is taking IndyCar champion Alex Palou to court for breach of contract. The Spaniard was supposed to join the British IndyCar team in 2023, but ultimately remained loyal to Chip Ganassi Racing. McLaren now seeks to recover the lost sponsorship revenue from him. According to Palou, the results of Fernando Alonso in the IndyCar prove that he cannot possibly be held responsible for the lost revenues.
The hearing between McLaren and Palou is in full swing in a London court. The Spaniard is allegedly indebted to the team for over 20 million dollars in sponsorship revenue and incurred costs. Palou previously defended himself by stating that he signed with McLaren because he was promised a Formula 1 seat. However, with the arrival of Oscar Piastri in 2023, he saw that opportunity go up in smoke. He also stated that CEO Zak Brown initially did not want to contract the Australian at all.
Meanwhile, more and more information about the lawsuit is coming to light. Palou has argued that McLaren itself is responsible for the team’s commercial appeal. As long as the IndyCar team does not perform at championship level, he would never have been able to fully utilize his potential – which is why the missed sponsorship revenues are greatly exaggerated according to Palou. He cited Formula 1 veteran Fernando Alonso as an example.
Palou Cites Alonso as an Example
“If a driver doesn’t have the right car or the best team, he can’t win races,” Palou stated. “There are plenty of examples of big names in motorsport who couldn’t perform because of the equipment they were given. Fernando Alonso is a two-time world champion and probably one of the best drivers of his generation. In 2019, he tried to qualify for the Indy 500 with McLaren, but he failed to qualify – while a rookie with no previous Indy 500 experience did,” he referred to Kyle Kaiser.
“In 2017, Alonso qualified with a different team (Andretti) and even had a chance to win, until the engine failed,” Palou continued. “In 2020, he finished 21st in the Indy 500 with McLaren,” he outlined the contrast. According to Palou’s camp, this underscores that McLaren’s problems are structural – and not due to the drivers. “Perhaps a driver can take a little more risk in one race, but over an entire season or several years, it makes hardly any difference,” he concluded emphatically.
