Contract Recognition Board

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The Contract Recognition Board (CRB) (German: Committee for Contract Confirmations) is an independent arbitration board for contractual disputes in motorsport that has been established in the Concorde Agreement since 1992 . It consists of a permanent notary's office based in Geneva , which keeps the contracts in a safe and fire-protected place. The decision-makers are three qualified lawyers of different nationalities with experience in contract law. At first it only applied to driver contracts in Formula 1 , later also to high-ranking technical staff in the teams. It has also been valid in the World Rally Championship since 2002 .

Before the CRB existed, drivers were able to get multiple contracts. For example, Jean Alesi had signed a contract with Ferrari and Williams for the 1991 season . After all, he drove for Ferrari. Michael Schumacher's move from Jordan to Benetton is considered to be the main trigger for founding the CRB . On his Formula 1 debut in Spa in 1991 , he finished seventh in qualifying with the defeated Jordan. Although Eddie Jordan would have liked to sign him longer, which he would have been entitled to by mutual agreement, Schumacher started for Benetton from the next race and stayed there for the next four years. At Benetton Roberto Moreno had to clear the place for Schumacher.

Contractual conflicts since the Contract Recognition Board was founded

1993: Mika Häkkinen

In 1992 Mika Häkkinen was a driver under contract with Lotus . Häkkinen wanted to join McLaren as a test driver for the next season , while Lotus wanted to assert an extension option. The CRB decided to switch because Lotus’s option was too weak.

1994: David Coulthard

David Coulthard had a contract with Williams as a test driver from 1993 to 1995. After Ayrton Senna's tragic accidental death in 1994, he took over his regular driver position, but later had to cede it to Nigel Mansell for the last four races of the season . In November Coulthard signed a contract with McLaren for the 1995 season, his management believing the contract with Williams was non-binding. In December, the CRB decided that the contract with Williams is valid and that Coulthard may only change from 1996.

1995: Mika Salo

Mika Salo made it into Formula 1 in 1994 and competed in the last two races of the season for Lotus. Whereupon he signed a multi-year contract with the team. The team went bankrupt. Salo then switched to Tyrrell . Team Lotus was later taken over by Pacific . The new owner said he had also acquired the driver contract with Salo with the Lotus team and went to the arbitration tribunal. On February 8, 1995, the CRB decided in favor of Tyrrell because Lotus was no longer the team with which Salo had signed the contract.

1997: Giancarlo Fisichella

Giancarlo Fisichella had a contract with Benetton. Benetton had loaned Fisichella to Jordan from 1997, this contract included a buyback option for the 1998 season for a fee of $ 2.4 million. The contract was on file with the CRB, but the buyback option was not properly declared. The CRB therefore decided that the contract with Jordan is valid. The case was taken to the Supreme Court in London . The new judgment went in favor of Benetton because Jordan had broken the loan agreement with Benetton by further contracts with Minardi , this was therefore invalid and Fisichella belonged to Benetton according to the original contract. The court also ruled that Benetton paid $ 2.4 million in compensation to Jordan because the forgotten declaration was not Jordan's mistake.

1999: Pedro Paolo Diniz

Pedro Diniz had a contract with Arrows for the 1997 to 1999 seasons . But when he moved to Sauber in 1999 , Arrows believed he had a valid contract. Diniz argued with performance clauses in the contract that the team failed to adhere to. On February 12, the CRB declared the new contract with Sauber and the exit clauses in the contract with Arrows valid.

2004: Jenson Button

Jenson Button was with BAR in 2004 . On July 20, 2004, the team pulled the option to extend their contract. Button management believed this option was invalid and also negotiated a deal with Williams for 2005. On October 16, both parties held a hearing in Milan . On October 20, the CRB announced that the contract with BAR was to be upgraded, which meant that the change was canceled. The core issue of the extension option was a guaranteed engine contract between BAR and Honda . Had Buttons Management consulted the watery contract between BAR and Honda, a change would have been possible.

A year later, Button planned to move to Williams again. When it became known that both the main sponsor HP and the engine supplier BMW were turning their backs on the team from 2006 onwards, Button did not want to change and bought himself out of the contract for an estimated 15 million euros.

2007: Giedo van der Garde

On February 1, 2007, Spyker announced that it had signed Giedo van der Garde as the third driver. At this point he already had a contract with Super Aguri for the 2007 season. The CRB did not actively deal with the contract conflict because no team requested this, but the driver was not given a super license. As a result, van der Garde completed some tests for Spyker, but was unable to take part in official events, so he could not compete as a Friday test driver.

2007: Timo Glock

In the 2007 season, Timo Glock was a test driver under contract with BMW Sauber . The team redeemed an option for another year. At Toyota , Glock was offered a regular cockpit, which also led to a contract. A hearing was held on November 2, 2007 in a hotel in Geneva. On November 17th, the CRB announced that Glock did not have to fulfill the contract with BMW Sauber and could switch to Toyota.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The 1997 Concorde Agreement - Bringing Transparency to Formula 1 . Forrest Bond, www.racefax.com, December 13, 2005. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
  2. ^ FIA press release ( Memento of October 8, 2008 in the Internet Archive ). March 20, 2002.
  3. ↑ a b Decision-making at the CRB . www.grandprix.com, October 18, 2004.
  4. ^ Jordan and Michael Schumacher settle . www.grandprix.com, April 14, 1997.
  5. ↑ Jenson Button will have to wait until Wednesday . www.motorsport-total.com, October 17, 2004.
  6. ^ Coulthard for McLaren . www.grandprix.com, September 25, 1995.
  7. ↑ December 1994 . www.teamdan.com/archive.
  8. ↑ Pacific Loses Salo . www.grandprix.com, February 13, 1995.
  9. ↑ My rejectful GPM2 career: Pacific 1995 . F1Rejects.com, forum post from September 2, 2010.
  10. ↑ Contract Recognition Board - Mr. Mika Salo ( Memento of March 2, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 69 kB). FIA press release, February 9, 1995.
  11. ^ Fisichella and the contract recognition board . www.grandprix.com, August 11, 1997.
  12. ^ The fight for Fisichella . www.grandprix.com, September 8, 1997.
  13. ^ Fisichella and Wurz at Benetton . www.grandprix.com, September 22, 1997.
  14. ↑ Tom loses to Diniz . www.grandprix.com, February 22, 1999.
  15. ^ Decision of the Contract Recognition Board ( Memento from September 16, 2012 in the Internet Archive ). FIA press release, February 19, 1999.
  16. ^ FIA press release ( Memento of November 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive ). October 21, 2004.
  17. ↑ BAR-Honda wins in "Fall Button" . www.motorsport-total.com, October 20, 2004.
  18. ↑ Williams wants money from Buttons Management . www.motorsport-total.com, October 24, 2004.
  19. ↑ "button Gate" in 2005 - this time with wrong sign . www.motorsport-total.com, July 25, 2005.
  20. ↑ So yes: Button stays with BAR-Honda in 2006! . www.motorsport-total.com, September 19, 2005.
  21. ↑ Super Aguri insists on a contract from van der Garde . www.motorsport-total.com, February 1, 2007.
  22. ↑ No super license for van der Garde yet . www.motorsport-total.com, March 29, 2007.
  23. ↑ Does the 'CRB' decide about Glock's future? .www.motorsport-total.com, November 2, 2007.
  24. ↑ Toyota confirms "binding agreement with Glock" . Www.motorsport-total.com, November 7, 2007.
  25. ↑ Glock is said to be allowed to enter the race for Toyota . Www.motorsport-total.com, November 16, 2007.