Williams has had a dismal season in 2023, owing largely to the on-track antics of Logan Sargeant. The American driver stands as the only active driver without any points in F1. Furthermore, his crashes have cost the team a fortune as they continue to struggle in the bottom half of the constructor’s standings. If that wasn’t enough, Williams now faces a threat of over $149,000,000 that haunts them from outside the F1 circuit, as per Motorsport.com.
With multiple crashes this season, Sargeant has cost his team as much as $3.9 million in damages. Given the cost cap regulations, the team is not allowed to spend much more on developments, and as such, the American drives a car that is not even worthy of competing with his teammate, let alone the rest of the grid. Amid the struggles, Williams now faces the additional headache of a lawsuit from their old title sponsors, ROKiT.
Williams facing a lawsuit worth over $149,000,000
After agreeing to a deal that would have run until 2023, Williams and ROKiT parted ways before the start of the 2020 season. The following year, the two companies engaged in their first legal battle, with Williams coming out on top. A Federal Court in the US asked ROKiT to pay the F1 team a little over $35 million in arbitration after backing out of the deal.
Two years later, the case is catching wind again as Motorsport.com reports ROKiT will refile the case in California following the dismissal of the case from Florida. With technical factors disallowing further pursuit of the case in Florida, ROKiT boss Jonathan Kendrick is keen on pursuing the case in California. Kendrick’s claim says Williams made “fraudulent statements” about the team’s competitiveness in the sport and is now seeking “an amount in excess of $149,528,550.”
Having refiled the lawsuit in California, Kendrick and Co. are adamant about winning and say they will not let go of the legal actions. Kendrick’s current lawyer, Larry Klayman, does not have the license to work in the state (which gave way to the dismissal of the Florida case), and as such, a new legal team will look after the proceedings in California.
Kendrick has a major allegation on the F1 team
The claim being pursued by Kendrick and ROKiT states- “as a direct and proximate result of the fraudulent statements made by the defendants, plaintiffs have suffered significant financial loss and damage to their goodwill and business reputation.”
🚨 ROKiT vs Williams – the 149 million $ Lawsuit to continue in California-
ROKiT boss Jonathan Kendrick has said he is “not letting go” of his $149m legal action against Williams, despite its dismissal by a Florida court on technical grounds.#F1 #Williams #ROKiT #Lawsuit pic.twitter.com/mha8YT4Luo— Desi Racing Co. (@DesiRacingco) September 14, 2023
The partnership between the two companies began in 2019, and they signed an extension till the end of the 2023 season. However, ROKiT backed out of the deal before a delayed 2020 season and refused to make any further payments to the team. Should ROKiT win the suit, it will make life very difficult for Williams as they might face operational issues in F1. As such, there could be chances of the team going on sale.
