The FIA Contract Recognition Board (CRB) is a body set up by motorsports governing body, the FIA, to determine the legality of driver

contract A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...

s and to settle disputes between

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

teams over such contracts. The CRB meets in Geneva, Switzerland and is made up of independent lawyers who are considered to be suitably experienced in the law of contract. It aims to decide disputes in a few days, rather than the extended periods a court of law would take. The CRB was formed after

Michael Schumacher Michael Schumacher (; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Schumacher won a record-setting seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, tied by Lewis Hamilton in ...

signed to drive for Benetton in , despite having agreed to discuss a contract with

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

Jenson Button (2004)

In August 2004,

Jenson Button Jenson Alexander Lyons Button (born 19 January 1980) is a British racing driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Jota. Button competed in Formula One from to , and won the World Drivers' Championship in with Brawn; ...

signed a contract with Williams even though he had a valid contract with

BAR Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar ** Chocolate bar * Protein bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a laye ...

. The CRB ruled in BAR's favour on 20 October that year and Button remained with the team. Although not a strict CRB decision, Button signed a contract with Williams to drive with them in 2006, but then later felt he would be better placed at BAR to get his maiden win as Williams were about to lose their works supply of BMW engines. Although Frank Williams determined the contract to be watertight, he later settled with Button for £18m not to take his option at Williams.

Timo Glock (2007)

During November 2007,

Timo Glock Timo Glock (; born 18 March 1982) is a German racing driver, who competes in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters for Dörr Motorsport. Glock competed in Formula One between and . Glock raced in Formula One for Jordan, Toyota, Virgin and Marussi ...

signed a contract with

Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...

for the 2008 season but

BMW Sauber The German automobile manufacturer/brand BMW has been involved in Formula One in a number of capacities since the inauguration of the World Drivers' Championship in . The company entered occasional races in the 1950s and 1960s (often under Form ...

also claimed to have a valid contract for 2008. The CRB ruled in favour of Toyota who then subsequently announced Glock as a driver.

Oscar Piastri (2022)

Oscar Piastri Oscar Jack Piastri ( ; born 6 April 2001) is an Australian racing driver who competes in Formula One for McLaren. Piastri has won Formula One Grands Prix across three seasons. Born and raised in Melbourne, Piastri began his career in radio-co ...

was signed to the Renault Sport Academy in 2020 as part of their Driver Development Program, which included racing in

FIA Formula 3 The FIA Formula 3 Championship (FIA F3) is a third-tier international single-seater racing championship organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The championship launched in 2019 as a feeder series for the FIA Formu ...

FIA Formula 2 The FIA Formula 2 Championship (F2) is a second-tier single-seater championship organized by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Held on racing circuits, the championship was introduced in 2017, following the rebranding of ...

and testing in

. When

Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso Díaz (; born 29 July 1981) is a Spanish racing driver who competes in Formula One for Aston Martin in Formula One, Aston Martin. Alonso has won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in and with ...

signed for

Aston Martin Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC () is a British manufacturer of Luxury car, luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Headed from 1947 by David Brown (entrepreneur ...

for the 2023 season,

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

quickly announced Piastri's promotion to a racing seat. However, Piastri quickly rebuffed Alpine's announcement by claiming he never signed a contract to race with the team. The CRB met on 29 August 2022 to determine whether Piastri was contracted to Alpine, or if he was free to join a different team for 2023. On 2 September, during the 2022 Dutch Grand Prix weekend, the CRB made a ruling against Alpine, recognising the contract between Piastri and McLaren signed on 4 July 2022 for the 2023 and 2024 seasons.

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...

announced Piastri's signing shortly after the CRB's decision, and Alpine were ordered to pay the legal costs of McLaren and Piastri as well as the arbitrators' fees.

References

Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile {{f1-stub