F1 News: Haas ordered to send Mazepin’s ’21 car to axed Uralkali (Update)

Former Haas sponsor Uralkali has made a bid in the Dutch courts to seize the Formula 1 team’s assets – including cars and other equipment – over an outstanding payment.

Following a Swiss arbitration court hearing in June, it was ruled that Haas should refund Uralkali part of its sponsorship payment made for 2022, prior to its title deal being cancelled in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

While the court stated that Haas was within its rights to terminate the deal, it also said that the American-owned squad could only keep a portion of the $13 million sponsorship balance paid for the campaign.

Haas was therefore ordered to give back the remainder of the sponsorship payment that went beyond 4 March, 2022, when the deal was cancelled. It is believed that this totaled around $9 million.

Following Uralkali’s claims last month that Haas had missed the July payment deadline for the refund, it is understood that the Russian company decided to escalate the matter with courts in Holland this week.

It asked for Haas’s assets at the Dutch Grand Prix to be seized – with a provisional ruling being given in its favor.

As a result, bailiffs and police visited the Haas team at Zandvoort on Thursday night to push forward with the matter and evaluate the team’s assets.

While it was agreed that Haas’s participation in the Dutch Grand Prix could proceed as normal, it is understood that the team has been told that it will not be allowed to remove its cars and equipment from the country after the race until the outstanding payment has been made.

The Haas team said: “Haas fully intends to pay to Uralkali all amounts due pursuant to the arbitration award, and there is no dispute over the amounts owed.

“Haas has been working with its lawyers to ensure payment will comply with all relevant US, EU, UK and Swiss sanctions and regulations.

“We will continue working with Uralkali in the coming days to resolve this matter definitively.” More at Autosport

(GMM) The Haas F1 Team has been ordered to send one of the Formula 1 cars Nikita Mazepin raced in 2021 to the similarly-axed former team title sponsor Uralkali.

Recently, Uralkali and Haas exchanged their conflicting reactions to a Swiss arbitration court ruling, after the Russian fertilizer company attempted to have sponsorship money returned by Haas.

Both Mazepin and his sponsor were ousted by Haas at the beginning of 2022, at the very beginning of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

And now, the Tass news agency claims that part of the full decision by the Swiss arbitration court involved not only the return of sponsorship money, but the transfer of a full 2021 Haas car.

“Uralkali hopes that Haas will comply with the tribunal’s decision and return the racing car within the established time frame, and also pay the outstanding debt as soon as possible,” a spokesman for Uralkali confirmed.

The media report added that Uralkali has sent Haas a letter to explain where the 2021 Haas should be delivered by the deadline of July 13.