INSIDER
22 F1 RACING AUGUST 2019F1
MASTERMIND
Yourchosenspecialisedsubject:
theworld’sgreatestsportHAAS’S LAWYERS
HAVE BEEN TRYING
TO GET CLARITY
FROM RICH ENERGY
AND CLAIM THE
SPONSORSHIP
TERMINATION
IS A BREACH OF
CONTRACT – SO
COMPENSATION
WILL BE REQUIRED
RICHENERGY
GOESRO GUE
Ever since Haas title sponsorRich Energy boldly
declared before the start of the seasonthat its target was
to beat Red Bull this year, the company has found itself
at the centre of a remarkable Formula 1 soap opera.
From battling social mediascepti cism aboutthe
ava ilability of its products, to fighting (and losing)a
copyright infringementcase against Whyte Bikes over
its stag logo, theenerg y drinks company has seldom
been out of thespotlight.
But its involvement in F1 took a remarkable twist on
the eve of the British Grand Prix when the company
announced on social media that it hadterm inated its
sponsorshipdeal withHaaswithimmediate effectbecause
the team had been underperforming. Rich Energy’s CEO
William Storey later labelled the Haas car a ‘milkfloat’.
But that post was just the start of a drama that is far
from over. For it emerged that the Haas sponsorship
termination came amid a boardroom battle for control of
Rich Energy. On oneside was Storey, while on the other
were shareholders trying to keepthe Haas deal alive and
push whatthey called a “rogue individual” aside.
Against that backdrop, Haas’s lawyers have been trying
to get clarity from Rich Energy about the situation, and
claim the sponsorship termination is a breach of contract- so compensationwill be required.
Storey himself has continued to fire barbs at the team
from the Rich Energy Twitter account. As this edition of
F1 Racingclosed for press the saga took a further turn as
Storey announced he hadsold his controlling stake in the
business to a “third party”. Documents filed at Companies
House indicate this has been done via the BDG Group, an
entity thatdescribes itself as “the UK’s leading unlicensed
Insolvency Practitioners”.
Haas has tried todistance itself from the boardroom
battles. For now, to ensure there is no breach of contract
from its side, it has kept the Rich Energy branding on its
car. Team boss Guenther Steiner is doing the best he can
to keep the focus on what is happening on track.
“I think we are in a good position because we showed
the worldeven with a controversy outside of us we are
not doing things which we shouldn’t be doing, we work
professionally, and keep out ofthings which we cannot
control,” he explained. “And are notentitled to control,
by the way. We justgo along and what happens happens,
and then we dealwith them.
“We are keeping our line. If they’ve got a problem, so be
it. There are a lot of positive people who think we’re doing
a great job. We got a lot of complimentseven if you think
we’re a bunch ofyou- know-whats.”
03
Whichdriver achieved Honda’slast win as an
enginemanufacturer before Austria this year?
Who is the only driverto win two world
championship F1 races at Jarama?
Which current driver’s best world championship
result remains the one he achieved on his
Formula 1 debut, and what was the position?
Which family won more world championship F1
races, the Rosbergs or the Villeneuves?
Which circuit held the first three SouthAfrican
GPs in 1962, 1963 and 1965?
True or false:Lewis Hamilton has won at least
one GP at every circuit on the 2019 calendar?
Nico Hülkenberg has had two Mexicanteam-
mates in F1, SergioPérez and whichother driver?
Whichteam is this: 291 races started over 1 9
seasons, 8 podiums, 1pole position,but no wins,
and it folded for good in 2002?
When was the last time a Mercedes-engined car
failedto scorea point in a race?
Up to and including the British GP, which driver
has started more F1 races: DaniilKvyat, Carlos
Sainz or RobertKubica?Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Q5
Q6
Q7
Q8
Q9
Q10
PICTURESPICTURES:STEVEN TEE;ANDYHONE;STEVE ETHERINGTON;SIMON GALLOWAYMario Andretti (1978/79) 2 Jenson Button (Hungary 2006) 1The Rosbergs (28 4 Kevin Magnussen, 2nd (Australia 2014) 39 Arrows 8 Esteban Gutiérrez 7 True 6 LondonEast 5 to 17)Kvyat’s 82) to Kubica’s 86 andSainz (91 10 Japan, 2008The saga of WilliamStorey
(above) and Rich Energy's
sponsorship of Haas blew
up at Silverstone