Sergio Pérez revealed details of the process that led Force India, the former Formula 1 team, to judicial administration in 2018 and stated that the measure was crucial for the survival of the team, which years later would become Aston Martin.
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At the time, the team was going through a severe financial crisis involving Vijay Mallya, the team owner, and the High Court of London ordered the team into judicial administration, with a 90-day deadline to find a new buyer. Pérez, who competed for the team between 2014 and 2020, revealed that he also had a whole year of unpaid salary.
In an interview with the High Performance Podcast, the Mexican said the situation worsened when his manager, Julian Jakobi, discovered that an unpaid supplier had filed a compulsory dissolution petition against the team, which could lead to the shutdown of operations.
“I didn’t understand anything about law, but I had money to receive. They didn’t pay my salary for the entire year,” said Perez. “We were having some delay, but then my manager told me there was a dissolution petition from one of the suppliers who hadn’t been paid. That means they can basically close the company, and the whole team will lose their jobs.”
To avoid this scenario, Perez and Jakobi initiated the judicial administration process before the supplier’s action advanced. “We did the whole process to put the team into judicial administration before the dissolution petition arrived, because if we hadn’t done that, the team would have gone bankrupt. All the people, the whole team [would have lost their jobs]. So, at the time, it was Force India, which today is Aston Martin. Aston Martin wouldn’t exist,” he said.
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The driver also recalled that he had to balance legal matters with his Formula 1 routine. During race weekends, he attended meetings with lawyers shortly before qualifying and races, as well as talking to staff to explain that the decision aimed to protect jobs.
“I remember talking to all the staff at one of the races and telling them: ‘Look, I’m doing this because it’s the right thing for everyone here. Otherwise, you will lose everything, all your jobs and such,’” he said.
The process ended with the purchase of the team by Lawrence Stroll, who acquired Force India while still under judicial administration. The team was renamed Racing Point and, in 2021, became Aston Martin.
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