McLaren seeking a whopping $23,000,000 from IndyCar champion Alex Palou for reneging on his contract

McLaren reportedly wants a whopping $23,000,000 from IndyCar champion Alex Palou for severing all ties with the team and not racing for its IndyCar team in 2024. The situation has been so tense that it is being dealt with in the High Court of Justice Business and Property Courts of England and Wales Commercial Court.

There is a long backstory to this, with Palou being in a tumultuous relationship with McLaren ever since 2022. While McLaren has been trying to get the Spanish driver for two years, he has not loved the Papaya team in IndyCar and has now decided to sever all ties with it.

Although McLaren obviously does not want to force Palou to drive for the team anymore, it is now asking for hefty financial compensation from him.

According to AP News, which has studied the 17-page filing from the court, the automotive company is asking for $23,000,000 in damages. This includes any future sponsorship tied to the Spaniard joining the team, the costs of recruiting him as a reserve F1 driver for their team, the money spent on developing the driver for F1, and even a $400,000 advance on his 2024 salary.

McLaren is not asking for any legal fee, which is being applied currently as the matter is being handled in court.

One of the reasons why Alex Palou severed all his connections with McLaren was because the team promised him a seat in Formula 1 in the future, but that day never came.

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McLaren team principal feels Mercedes could bounce back soon

McLaren F1 team principal Andrea Stella recently stated how other teams will gradually settle on their core car concept and start to develop their 2024 F1 cars accordingly.

Although he does not know whether the development of other teams is faster than McLaren, Stella suspects Mercedes could also make a strong comeback in 2024.

“At the moment, we are encouraged by the development we see on next year's car. But, at the same time, I guess it's the same for everyone because right now some concepts are starting to be quite clear across the paddock,” Stella told motorsport.com.

“We don't know whether we are developing faster than other teams. And above all, we don't know whether we are developing faster than Red Bull. And let's not forget that Mercedes, I think they realized what they need to work on. And I suspect they're going to jump back quite strongly,” he added.

McLaren has seen incredible gains in terms of performance and stability in its car, especially after it brought upgrades to the Austrian GP.

Only time will tell whether McLaren will be able to be consistent and challenge massive top teams like Mercedes, Red Bull, and Ferrari.