Force India Begin Legal Proceedings

It is no secret that the Force India team is undergoing financial troubles at the moment. There have been numerous reports that there were going to be potential buyers. However, the team always denied such rumours. Earlier in 2018, it had transpired that energy drinks company Rich Energy had offered to buy out the team. But deputy team principal Robert Fernley denied the rumours.

Fernley confirmed that discussions between the two parties had taken place. Unfortunately, the idea of a potential deal fell through.

They were not informed about the deal’s specifics as that was handled by the shareholders. Any talk of the buyout was none of the team’s concern.

There were even talks of a name change for a while but that too never materialised. Earlier this month, there were talks that the team was being bought by billionaire Lawrence Stroll.

Now, according to the latest reports, the Silverstone-based team would be appearing in court. It seems that the team could likely enter administration in the near future. A similar fate befell the now defunct Caterham, Marussia and HRT F1 teams a few years ago. It happened again when the Manor team went into administration and folded at the end of 2016.

For a team that has had as much success for a midfield team, this seems like a cruel fate. Sadly, with team co-owner Vijay Mallya having problems of his own, their hands are tied.

Force India Chief Operating Officer Otmar Szafnauer and Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff will be appearing in court to begin the legal proceedings. Szafnauer has firmly stated that none of the team personnel’s employment will be affected by the court summonings.

Also, there is some good news for the team as they will still be able to participate in this weekend’s race.