Palou Tells London Court Piastri Signing Closed His McLaren F1 Route as Brown Rejects Promise Claims
McLaren seeks about $20.7 million in damages, alleging Palou broke his IndyCar contract by remaining with Chip Ganassi.
Overview
- Palou testified he was upset by McLaren choosing Oscar Piastri in 2022 and said the only appeal of his McLaren deal was a credible path to Formula 1.
- He told the court that at an October 2022 Beaverbrook dinner, Zak Brown said hiring Piastri was Andreas Seidl’s decision and that Piastri’s performance would be measured against his for 2024.
- Brown testified he never promised or even said Palou would be under F1 consideration, describing Palou as a contingency option and citing sponsor and driver-program repercussions from Palou’s decision.
- WhatsApp screenshots presented in court suggested McLaren staff used disappearing messages to avoid lawsuits, a claim Brown denied as he described the practice as company policy.
- Palou said a potential AlphaTauri opportunity faded after Brown spoke with Helmut Marko, following Palou’s June 2023 outreach to discuss a move.