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What began nearly four years ago with the signing of a contract that wasn’t ultimately fulfilled, and later evolved into a multi-million-dollar lawsuit between racing driver Alex Palou, McLaren, and Chip Ganassi Racing, is finally settled. The amount of the settlement was not made public, but it certainly wasn’t cheap, as back in January, a London High Court ruled that the four-time IndyCar champ and Indy 500 winner had to pay $12 million in damages to McLaren.
All parties took to social media Friday morning to share statements about the settlement, which included some interesting language that blamed Palou’s inner circle or advisors for the fiasco.
Brian Spurlock via Getty Icon Sportswire
“Over the past few months, I’ve had time to reflect on what has been an incredibly challenging period, and I want to address it directly,” said Alex Palou, four-time champion and reigning Indianapolis 500 winner. “First, I want to acknowledge both Zak Brown and Chip Ganassi. Both were put in a difficult position, and I regret being in the middle of that. Also, in January, a UK judge ruled in McLaren Racing’s favor regarding my IndyCar contractual breach. I respect that decision.”
“I also recognize that the way events unfolded in the summer of 2023 could have been handled differently,” Palou continued. While little of this is publicly known, I found myself pulled in various directions and had the wrong people around me back then, who I believe did not have my best interests at heart. I believe back then that I was provided with the wrong advice or no advice at all. In hindsight, had I reached out to Zak directly, perhaps things may have played out differently. McLaren and Zak supported me in many ways; they fulfilled every obligation, went above and beyond, and delivered on everything they said in their contracts. I was never misled by McLaren, and I very much respect their organization,” he said.
Matthew Ashton via Getty
“I also want to thank Chip, my teammates, and everyone at Chip Ganassi Racing for their dedication and support throughout this process. I’ve learned a great deal from this experience. I’m delighted this matter has now settled and I wish to thank all of those involved in reaching an amicable conclusion. My focus now is fully on moving ahead where two great organizations that I respect deeply will compete solely on the racetrack,” Palou added.
Meanwhile, Ganassi Racing’s statement echoed the same sentiment, with owner Chip even saying he hoped Palou had learned the lesson of surrounding himself with better people moving forward. You certainly get the feeling that while their relationship was strained as a result of this—and understandably so—things are better now. And hey, they should be, given Palou’s relentless performance and how much the duo has accomplished together in a relatively short amount of time.
Perhaps we’ll never know what kind of discount McLaren’s Zak Brown gave Palou and Ganassi on their settlement, but I can’t imagine it was much. The business of racing is complicated, and while I don’t believe the stratospheric amounts McLaren claimed to have invested in Palou over a couple of years (it was reported that it could be as much as $40 million), I genuinely believe lots of money was sent down the drain as a result of the contractual breach. Plus, Palou was given an advancement on his earnings, which he technically never earned as he never worked a day for McLaren.
“I’m very pleased that we have reached a final settlement with Chip Ganassi Racing after a UK judge ruled in our favour in January,” said the McLaren boss. “I want to thank the team working directly on the case for so many months, and everyone who supported us throughout the process. Pleased we can now return to battling things out on track and focus on what’s set to be an exciting IndyCar season.”
Marshall Pruett of Racer.com caught up with Palou and Ganassi at the IndyCar season-opener in Florida, and while the Spaniard did not share more on the official statement, he did say that he was “happy to finally say that it’s over, and he can focus on what matters now.” Meanwhile, Ganassi simply said that he held a conversation with Brown.
You can read more about the four-year saga here.
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As deputy editor, Jerry draws on a decade of industry experience and a lifelong passion for motorsports to guide The Drive’s short- and long-term coverage.
