Bahrain Grand Prix 2016, Sakhir - Race 2/21

Caporegime
Joined
8 Mar 2007
Posts
37,146
Location
Surrey
I call BS on this. It's xactly having a contract that allowed him to leave Ferrari. For some reason certiain people on here don't seem to understand what a contract is and means.

Eh? Alonso was signed to drive for Ferrari in 2015, he broke that contract. He also broke the contract he had with McLaren in 2007.

Ferrari bought Kimi out of his contract with them for 2010.

Sauber had contracts with about 6 drivers to drive last year.

Maldonado had a contract to drive for Renault this year.

Etc...

F1 contracts mean nothing, as they can be broken incredibly easily. Sometimes through just being broke, others through the liberal use of a large checkbook

Does Vandoorne get Alonso's allocation of tires for this weekend?

Yes. The allocation is per car, set 14/8 weeks in advance (Flyaway/European races).
 
Soldato
Joined
15 Feb 2003
Posts
10,071
Location
Europe
Eh? Alonso was signed to drive for Ferrari in 2015, he broke that contract. He also broke the contract he had with McLaren in 2007.

Ferrari bought Kimi out of his contract with them for 2010.

Sauber had contracts with about 6 drivers to drive last year.

Maldonado had a contract to drive for Renault this year.

Etc...

F1 contracts mean nothing, as they can be broken incredibly easily. Sometimes through just being broke, others through the liberal use of a large checkbook



Yes. The allocation is per car, set 14/8 weeks in advance (Flyaway/European races).

Alonso's contract wasn't broken. To break a contract would indicate a breach. This wasn't the case.

A contract governs the relationship between parties for a set duration. It doesn't mean, nor has it ever meant it cannot be ended before this set duration. Terms and conditions are present in contracts to protect the parties privy to it, and set about the mechanism for ending the contract.

It's like when a mobile phone company in forms you that they want to hike you call charges by more than 10%. You most likely are allowed to leave the contract due to certain expressed terms within it. If you leave, you haven't broken the contract, that would leave you open to legal proceedings, instead you've used the mechanism within the contract to leave it, just as the contract was designed to allow you to do.

Perhaps it's just a matter terminology.
 
Caporegime
Joined
17 Jul 2010
Posts
25,880
Without knowing Alonso's contract in detail who knows what was in it but I'd imagine there were certain performance clauses built in, both on Alonso's part and Ferrari's. The rumour was that Ferrari didn't meet the criteria Alonso and his team set so he was free to leave without penalty, but that's just rumour.
 
Man of Honour
Joined
11 Mar 2004
Posts
76,634
Without knowing Alonso's contract in detail who knows what was in it but I'd imagine there were certain performance clauses built in, both on Alonso's part and Ferrari's. The rumour was that Ferrari didn't meet the criteria Alonso and his team set so he was free to leave without penalty, but that's just rumour.

there was a clause in it, that was widely discussed at the time, if he was lower than x in the championship by such a point in the season, he could leave. iirc they even found out which race and what position.
 
Man of Honour
Joined
11 Mar 2004
Posts
76,634
Will be exciting to watch both Merc drivers getting out the car, and going for a nap, after they get 1-2 on the first Q3 run.

other way round you would expect.
Ferrari giving up as they have no chance of matching and the two mercs having one more run to try and beat each other.
which is what happened last time.
 
Caporegime
Joined
8 Mar 2007
Posts
37,146
Location
Surrey
Alonso's contract wasn't broken. To break a contract would indicate a breach. This wasn't the case.

A contract governs the relationship between parties for a set duration. It doesn't mean, nor has it ever meant it cannot be ended before this set duration. Terms and conditions are present in contracts to protect the parties privy to it, and set about the mechanism for ending the contract.

It's like when a mobile phone company in forms you that they want to hike you call charges by more than 10%. You most likely are allowed to leave the contract due to certain expressed terms within it. If you leave, you haven't broken the contract, that would leave you open to legal proceedings, instead you've used the mechanism within the contract to leave it, just as the contract was designed to allow you to do.

Perhaps it's just a matter terminology.

The discussion has come about based on the suggestion that Alonso might packup and leave, and the response to that suggesting he would drive until the end of his contract before doing so.

As we have both shown, having a contract has no bearing on wether that contract is seen to the end. There seems to be this view that if a driver has a contract that they will drive for the duration of that contract. I think we are both agreeing that this is not the case.

In summayr, were saying the same thing, your just saying it far more elequently than me :)

In terms of genuine contract breach, examples I can think of would be Montoya being fired by McLaren for signing with another team (in another series) without informing McLaren, and Maldonado being dropped by Renault because PDVSA failed to honour their terms of the contract (i.e. paying up).

Alonso leaving Ferrari is early termination of a contract, rather than breaking/breaching it. Kimi leaving Ferrari was forced early termination by paying to get out of it.
 
Soldato
Joined
13 May 2007
Posts
8,212
Location
London
The reality is that if a driver doesn't want to be a part of a team, no team is going to hold them to it whilst paying their large wage packet. They'd rather cut losses and terminate via the methods mentioned above or by allowing them to quit with no compensation. They might hold out if there are no suitable alternatives but only if they expect another team would pay them to relinquish the driver from his contract.

Effectively money money money :p
 
Caporegime
Joined
8 Mar 2007
Posts
37,146
Location
Surrey
Its a valid point. Honda or no Honda, there has to be a few drivers on the grid wondering if F1 is really the right place to be? Rats fleeing a sinking ship, and all that.

When Azerbajan rolls around I wonder if Hulk will be glad he is sat on the grid there, in a sport that is in total disarray, rather than sitting in a Porsche defending his Le Mans 24 Hours title?

I know where I'd rather be.
 
Back
Top Bottom