Haas’ return to the Formula 1 World Championship was far from as smooth and fruitful as the managers of the only North American team competing in the series had imagined. Nico Hulkenbergh’s eleventh place finish in the Netherlands on Sunday left him just one position away from scoring a point, which ultimately went to Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin. Once the race was over, the result was probably the least of the worries for the North Carolina-based company, whose assets had been moved to compete in Zandvoort by the Dutch authorities, and which remain there. The two prototypes raced by Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen, as well as the rest of the material, were blocked at the Dutch circuit, pending the resolution of the conflict that Haas has with Uralkali, a former Russian sponsor, with whom the team executives decided to break relations in March 2022, as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, in a joint action that also ended with the dismissal of driver Nikita Mazepin.
Last Thursday, the police had already made an assessment of the goods that Haas had brought to the Netherlands to compete in the Grand Prix, in response to the complaint filed by Uralkali against its former client. The chemical company is demanding payment of an amount of around nine million dollars, as a termination of the contract that was not fulfilled due to the will of the Haas executives. In June, the intervention of the Swiss arbitration court ruled that the team was obliged to make this payment to Uralkali, who, according to the facts, has not yet received proof of payment.
Haas said on Friday that it had made the payment, and attributed the delay in receiving the amount to sanctions imposed on various Russian companies in response to the war against Ukraine. “Haas fully intends to pay Uralkali the amounts owed, as made clear in the ruling. There is no dispute over these amounts. Haas has been working with its lawyers to ensure that the payment complies with all relevant sanctions and regulations of the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. We will continue to work with Uralkali in the coming days to resolve this matter definitively,” the team said in a statement on Friday. Uralkali, at the same time, does not seem to be willing to lift its pressure, and also demands the delivery of one of the structure’s cars, as stated in the initial agreement between both parties.
While waiting for the conflict to be resolved, the Haas cars, trucks and the rest of the team’s equipment are still at Zandvoort. Once there is proof that the funds have been transferred, which could be as early as Monday, the workers will have just enough time to rush off to Monza, where the next Grand Prix will be held next weekend.
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