McLaren won a lawsuit against the four-time champion. He owes $12,000,000

The McLaren team has won its case in the UK Supreme Court and will receive multimillion-dollar compensation in the case involving four-time IndyCar champion Alex Palou.

McLaren filed a lawsuit for approximately $20 million after Palou violated his contract to join the IndyCar team in 2023 and become McLaren’s test and reserve driver in Formula 1. The racer himself admitted that he had violated the agreement, explaining that he took this step due to unfulfilled promises. Palou believed that he was prepared to compete in F1 as early as 2024, but when he realized that this would not happen, he refused to cooperate and signed a new contract with Chip Ganassi Racing.

Hearings at the High Court of London took place in October 2025. Witnesses included Palu and McLaren CEO Zac Brown.

Judge Picken rejected McLaren’s Formula 1 claim, so Palou does not need to pay any compensation for the F1 programme. At the same time, regarding IndyCar, the court found McLaren’s demands justified: Palu and his management company ALPA Racing must compensate the driver’s salary, payments for the 2024-2027 seasons, a bonus from General Motors for attracting a top driver and the loss of income from business transactions.

The total settlement currently stands at $10.19 million, and a final verdict in another sponsorship case could increase that to $12.6 million; This is much less than the amount McLaren was originally seeking.