Gascoyne seeks Force India damages

Gascoyne had his contract with the team terminated in November 2008, 12 months before his original three-year deal with them was due to come to an end.

Unhappy about what happened, he has now lodged legal paperwork in London's High Court for damages caused by his dismissal, plus other incidental costs.

Gascoyne is seeking the full $2.5 million (USD) wages that he was due for the final year of his deal, plus at least a percentage of the potential $5 million (USD) that he could have earned had he taken up a two-year contract extension option.

Life insurance cover claims, plus incidence of taxation and interest, are also mentioned in the writ that has been lodged with the High Court.

Gascoyne parted company with the team in November last year as team principal Vijay Mallya conducted a management reshuffle brought about by the outfit's switch to Mercedes-Benz engines.

Mallya said at the time: "Force India is my most difficult project to date and it has become clear that it requires more direct input from my side and greater performance accountability.

"We have come a long way this season, but we need more and that requires some radical reorganisation of the management structure to ensure the maximum productivity."