Nyck de Vries prosecuted in the Netherlands

Established for the first time in his career in Formula 1 at the age of 27 after his successful interim at Williams last year during the Italian Grand Prix, Nyck de Vries is about to make his big debut at Alpha Tauri in the shoes of a permanent pilot.

While he is in full physical preparation with his coach Pyry Salmela near Dubai, the Batavian and his entourage must manage a potentially cumbersome extra-sporting file at the same time. 

In the Netherlands, daily life The Financial Times indeed argues that De Vries is currently being attacked on the legal front by Jeroen Schothorst.

In the article, we learn that the pilot born in 1995 borrowed 250 euros from Schothorst's investment company, Inventrand, in order to finance his 000 season of Formula 2 at Prema.

The Dutch newspaper claims that the agreement would include an interest rate of 3% per year and a percentage of future profits in the event of Nyck joining Formula 1.

A loan that he would not have had to repay if De Vries failed to reach F1 by 2022. Except that between the fact that he signed his contract with AlphaTauri at the end of 2022, and that he was employee Mercedes in F1 for the last two years as a reserve and test driver, this offered a legal opportunity to Schothorst who obviously jumped at the chance. 

Nyck De Vries got a taste of his upcoming collaboration with AlphaTauri during end-of-season testing in Abu Dhabi. © Florent Gooden / DPPI

Concretely, the Dutch real estate magnate implicated the pilot in court, explaining that the latter had not sent him the required information concerning his income, his contracts from recent seasons, in particular the one signed with AlphaTauri relating to the 2023 season . 

In a statement sent to the Dutch press, Schothorst broke his silence by explaining his disagreement with De Vries.

“First of all, I want to say that I think it's great for Nyck that he is successful as a Formula 1 driver and that there are two Dutch drivers at the start of the Dutch Grand Prix next August.

We invested in De Vries' career at a crucial time, when no one wanted to do it anymore. We now have different opinions on the interpretation of the agreement we reached at the time.

These things can happen, and as a result, we unfortunately have no choice but to take legal action. We really would have preferred it to be different, but that doesn't change the fact that, as a motorsport fan, I wish Nyck all the best for the rest of his career."

Verdict expected in February

In an article published by our colleagues from Telegraaf, De Vries' lawyer, in this case Jeroen Bedaux, explains that Nyck De Vries would have offered the pure and simple reimbursement of the sum borrowed, namely 250 euros in addition to 000 in interest, while moving forward which the principal concerned would have refused. 

“Everything suggests that Investrand cannot support the fact that De Vries has become a Formula 1 driver in 2023, and not in the last year of the agreement”, Bedaux asserted in court this Thursday. The verdict is expected in February. 

Contacted by AUTOhebdo, the Batavian's sporting entourage did not wish to make the slightest comment, preferring to let the driver's legal representatives manage the matter.

The 2 Formula 2019 champion, and world champion of Formula E 2020/21, he is focused on his pre-season. He will be on track next February 23-25 ​​during pre-season testing in Bahrain. 

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