Szafnauer: “Force India Team’s Salaries Had to Be Paid from My Own Pocket!”

Former F1 team principal Otmar Szafnauer revealed that he had to personally cover Force India’s salaries on two occasions.

Szafnauer was a key figure at Force India, joining the Silverstone-based team in 2009. Under his leadership, Force India rose to prominence, becoming a consistent mid-field competitor and frequently reaching the podium with Sergio Perez in the mid-2010s. However, the team faced difficulties before being taken over by Lawrence Stroll in 2018 and later rebranded as Racing Point.

Speaking on the High Performance podcast, Szafnauer explained that he once had to use his own funds to pay the team’s salaries. “Twice, I paid the employees’ salaries out of my own pocket.”

“I knew the salaries wouldn’t be paid, and I understood how difficult that was for people.
“We had to pay the salaries, and the Formula 1 money was coming in five days. So let’s say the salaries would be paid on Friday, and we would receive the Formula 1 money the following Wednesday.
“I could have waited and made the payment on Wednesday instead of Friday, but I didn’t.
“It was a big risk. In that five-day gap, someone could have come in and said, ‘Hey, you owe me 2 million dollars!’
“But I knew that the team’s success was thanks to the spirit and camaraderie we had.”