Caterham F1: Assets have been seized in Leafield
Faced with financial difficulties and just days before the Japanese Grand Prix, team Caterham faced a seizure of assets at its headquarters in Leafield, United Kingdom.
After rumors emerged this Wednesday afternoon about the visit of bailiffs, the Caterham team issued a statement in the evening condemning unjustified and unfounded rumors concerning actions against 1MRT, the owner of Caterham F1, while indicating that an action had been taken on [Wednesday] against a subcontractor company of 1MRT. This company is not owned by 1MRT and has no influence on Caterham F1’s participation. Contrary to uncontrolled rumors, all operations are currently underway in Leafield and the race team is preparing in Japan.
A source close to the team, wishing to remain anonymous, told Reuters over the phone that bailiffs had indeed visited the Caterham factory, while noting that it was not the first time and that the facilities or computer servers had not been shut down: « All this nonsense has nothing to do with the Formula 1 team… it is 100% unrelated to the F1 team or any company or subsidiary of the F1 team. »
However, a list of seized goods has been published on the website of enforcement agents at the High Court of Justice of England and Wales, The Sheriffs Office. The list includes a 2013 Caterham used for testing, parts for the 2014 Caterham (which were intended for the Japanese GP), a simulator, steering wheels, wheels, machining equipment, Caterham and Lotus F1 memorabilia (former name of Caterham), pit lane equipment (jacks, pumps, starters), televisions, screens, and other goods and equipment. The statement specifies that the goods were seized in Leafield […] and are being kept securely and that they will be sold at auction in mid-October.
The Caterham team changed ownership in July when Tony Fernandes sold his structure to a group of investors from Switzerland and the Middle East. Manfredi Ravetto, the current team director, recently explained to Autosport that the previous management had left some surprises behind: “In this team, surprises never stop. If we continue to have 10 surprises a day, then we will have to continue producing 10 miracles a day. So, my concern is what will happen when we run out of miracles.”
The coming days will tell if Caterham can still believe in miracles.
