Monisha Kaltenborn has broken her silence on the Giedo van der Garde affair, admitting she made "mistakes". The storm surrounding Sauber's Indian-born Austrian boss and co-owner in Australia recently caused some reporters to question her ongoing suitability for the job.
Now, in her first interview since the resolution of the saga with a reported EUR 15 million payment to Dutchman van der Garde, Kaltenborn admitted the explosion of the case in the Melbourne courts and paddock had been a "shock". "When you sit in an Australian court and hear the word prison, that's a shock," the 43-year-old, who in 2012 became the first female team boss in F1 history, told the Swiss newspaper Sonntagsblick.
Kaltenborn also admitted the saga could have taken yet another twist in Melbourne had van der Garde managed to obtain his F1 super licence. "If he had received a licence from the FIA," she said, "he would have tried everything to drive."
That would have unseated either Felipe Nasr, the Brazilian whose sponsor Banco do Brasil is paying for the livery colours of this year's Sauber car, or the similarly high-paying Marcus Ericsson. Ultimately, the saga was ended when van der Garde's management and backers accepted a reported EUR 15 million compensation package from Sauber.
It is not clear whether the money was paid by the financially-struggling Hinwil based team, Nasr and Ericsson's backers, or founder Peter Sauber. "I cannot and will not comment on that," Kaltenborn said. However, she did admit: "Yes, I made mistakes. I was too trusting and I was punished bitterly. Courts do not judge by moral principles," Kaltenborn added. "For them, only written agreements apply without regard to the other circumstances." (GMM)
Kaltenborn admits 'mistakes' in Van der Garde affair
- Published on 23 Mar 2015 13:45
-
2
- By: Rob Veenstra
.
Trending news
-
Hamilton's brutal self-assessment after third recent penaltyLewis Hamilton delivered a stark self-assessment after a difficult Hungarian Grand Prix, accepting responsibility for...
27 Jul 2026 16:22 -
Why Carlos Sainz is rethinking his Williams futureCarlos Sainz has acknowledged that his ambition to return to winning ways has been pushed back by as much as two year...
27 Jul 2026 15:21 -
Why Fernando Alonso is nowhere near F1 retirementFernando Alonso has signalled his intention to continue racing in Formula 1, stating that enjoyment behind the wheel,...
27 Jul 2026 14:19 -
Why Hamilton openly questioned Ferrari's VSC pit callLewis Hamilton has openly questioned Ferrari's strategic decision-making at the Hungarian Grand Prix, stating tha...
27 Jul 2026 13:18 -
Norris's bold claim after Hungary win reveals champion mindsetLando Norris delivered one of his most complete performances to win the Hungarian Grand Prix and immediately declared...
27 Jul 2026 12:17
Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Local time
-
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Azerbaijan Grand Prix
Local time
-
Friday
-
Saturday
-
Sunday
-
Friday
-
Saturday
-
Sunday
Test calendar
Circuit de Catalunya - Winter testing
-
Jan 26
I. Hadjar
- 1:18.159
-
-
-
Jan 27
M. Verstappen
- 1:19.578
-
-
-
Jan 28
A. Antonelli
- 1:17.362
-
-
-
Jan 29
G. Russell
- 1:16.445
-
-
-
Jan 30
L. Hamilton
- 1:16.348
-
-
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
-
Feb 11
L. Norris
- 1:34.669
-
-
-
Feb 12
C. Leclerc
- 1:34.273
-
-
-
Feb 13
A. Antonelli
- 1:33.669
-
-
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
-
Feb 18
G. Russell
- 1:33.459
-
-
Feb 19
A. Antonelli
- 1:32.803
-
-
Feb 20
C. Leclerc
- 1:31.992
-
-
World Championship standings 2026
Pos
Driver
Team
Points
Pos
Team
Points
Related news
Give your opinion!
Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Spain
-
Bahrain
-
Bahrain
Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
-
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
-
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
-
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
6 - Mar 8
Australia
Albert Park
13 - Mar 15
27 - Mar 29
Japan
Circuit Suzuka
10 - Apr 12
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
17 - Apr 19
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street Circuit
1 - May 3
United States of America
Miami International Autodrome
22 - May 24
Canada
Gilles Villeneuve
5 - Jun 7
Monaco
Monte Carlo
12 - Jun 14
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
26 - Jun 28
Austria
Red Bull Ring
3 - Jul 5
United Kingdom
Silverstone
17 - Jul 19
Belgium
Spa-Francorchamps
24 - Jul 26
Hungary
Hungaroring
Driver profile
- Team -
- Points -
- Podiums -
- Grand Prix -
- Country BR
- Date of b. Aug 21 1992 (33)
- Place of b. Brasilia, BR
- Weight 68 kg
- Length 1.75 m
0 members have this team as their favourite
Tweets about Felipe Nasr
Team profile
- Team name Sauber
- Base - Switzerland
- Gabriel Bortoleto
- Kimi Räikkönen 7
- Felipe Massa 8
- Marcus Ericsson 9
- Nico Hülkenberg 11
- Felipe Nasr 12
- Esteban Gutierrez 12
- Felipe Massa 12
- Felipe Massa 12
- Kamui Kobayashi 14
- Sergio Perez 15
- Charles Leclerc 16
- Kamui Kobayashi 16
- Sergio Perez 17
- Kimi Räikkönen 17
- Esteban Gutierrez 21
- Kamui Kobayashi 23
- Guanyu Zhou 24
- Nico Hülkenberg 27
- Antonio Giovinazzi 36
- Valtteri Bottas 77
- Pascal Wehrlein 94
- Adrian Sutil 99
- 115,816 comments on Sauber
- 5 members have this team as their favourite
- Tweets about Sauber
Replies (2)
Login to replyPosts: 204
She cannot "talk" her way around the lasting discredit that she brought on herself, the reputation of Sauber, and F1 by her intentional mistreatment of Giedo Van der Garde and permanent damage to his career. Like Hestor, she will wear the "A" forever.
Posts: 893
"I was too trusting and I was punished bitterly." I don't buy it, it was a simple breach of contract by Sauber, so far there is nothing that suggests anything else.
Same goes for Sutil who I thought was also taking legal action to get compensation. Been a while since we heard anything about that.