The dire problems at the Sauber and Manor Formula One teams totally overshadowed Mercedes’ dominance of Friday’s two practice sessions for Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix.
Neither of the stricken teams took part in the morning run, and although Sauber did participate in the afternoon there was still no sign of Manor, who are now a major doubt for the race.
Sauber’s legal battle with Giedo van der Garde will now drag into Saturday, with the team in risk of being in contempt of court unless they allow the Dutch driver to take part in the race.
Van der Garde was spotted in the paddocks wearing the overalls of Marcus Ericsson, who along with Felipe Nasr was scheduled to be a Sauber driver for the new F1 season.
Sauber were forced to list their assets, with the possibility of bailiffs entering the paddock to remove their cars and the rest of their equipment. Ultimately, Monisha Kaltenborn, the Sauber team principal, risked imprisonment unless she complied with the wishes of the court, having lost an appeal against a court judgment that had found in favour of van der Garde, though both parties appeared eager to find a solution.
The problem is that Sauber have three drivers. They cancelled Van der Garde’s deal in February, according to Kaltenborn.
When Sauber did take part in the afternoon practice, the cars were driven by Ericsson and Nasr. Van der Garde is still waiting to receive the super licence that is required to drive in F1.
“It’s definitely a very negative on the team,” Kaltenborn said on Friday evening: “The situation was for a while unclear. We now have certain actions taken against the team and we are acting accordingly.
“We have a very clear view of what we did. We had taken action, after a while we thought about it very well. And it was very clear. The outcome here is very different, and that is all I can say about.”
She added: “This whole matter does not have any effect on the way we work and the way the team works and Peter Sauber is the chairman of the company and his role has not changed.” When asked whether she would resign, Kaltenborn added: “I’ve not considered that.”
Meanwhile at Manor, the problems are more technical. They are still running the 2014 car, albeit one with safety alterations for 2015. The team only emerged from administration earlier this month and may not take part in Sunday’s race. They are without some of the software and data they require to run.
When asked whether they would be taking part in Sunday’s race, the Manor president, Graeme Lowdon, said: “I honestly don’t know.”
As for those cars that did take part, Nico Rosberg pipped his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton on both occasions.
