Adrian Sutil in court after glassing Renault's Eric Lux?

[Famine]

Firstly, the thread title is misleading - we don't actually know the details of the incident yet, so we don't know if Sutil "glassed" Lux though the evidence obviously points to it. Sutil isn't in court just yet either..

Check out the last character in the thread title.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

But the title is not phrased as a question. It should be "Will Adrian Sutil go to court for glassing Renault's Eric Lux?"

 

[GTP_Ingram]

To be honest, I was completely confused by the utterly misleading and sensationalist thread title. No wait, it was that other thing.. I wasn't.

"During a private event, there was a very unfortunate action by me in which I hurt another person completely unintentionally,"

It is hard to imagine a situation whereby you hold a broken champagne glass and 'unintentionally' stick it in someone's neck, unless Mr Lux was rummaging around in a bar bin at the time.

 

[niky]

Accidentally cutting someone in the jugular with a champagne glass... that would be hilarious if it weren't so serious...

 

[Stevisiov]

Accidentally cutting someone in the jugular with a champagne glass... that would be hilarious if it weren't so serious...

Maybe we should be thankful he hasn't had a podium finish yet?

 

[Ardius]

Granted, he has had a lot of bad luck. For example, being taken out by Raikkonen twice while in a very good position considering how bad his car was. Monaco 2008 was a bit heartbreaking. However, he has been responsible for a lot of facepalm moments. 2010 was his best season so far and was a huge step up in performance. There are a lot of people waiting for an f1 drive and if it was my choice, i'd probably choose someone else over him. Nick Heidfeld springs to mind. The Renault team obviously agree, although their choice might have been influenced by the fact that Nick's relatively contract free. I'm not saying he's a bad driver, but no other teams have risen to the bait. Some have considered him, but have ultimately chosen not to go with him.

If these allegations turn out to be true, I can only see him making a step down the field. The past few seasons now, he has talked about moving on to a better team, so that can't be doing him any favours with Force India. Maybe they'll keep him, but this whole situation is very damaging. It could have a negative impact on his career even if the allegations are proven wrong.

Out of curiosity, where do you see Sutil ending up? Granted, there was some talk about Renault. That's not going to happen now, unless Lux is lying. There was also some talk about him replacing Schumacher, but all that has really happened is talking. As far as we know, both teams have thought about him and said "no". Although there could be some unknown contract. I'm curious as to where you think he deserves to/ looks likely to be. Personally, I see him staying at force india, unless he has some great results. I can only see him staying put or moving down.
.

It really depends how this all pans out, but if it doesn't spiral out of control and Sutil doesn't get criminal charges, then Mercedes is still a possibility. I think Sutil has done enough to deserve a chance for a top seat, its just unfortaunte that circumstances are going to deny him that - Renault is obviously a bit difficult now, Mercedes might be more inclined to take Di Resta, McLaren are all sorted, Ferrari if they ever replace Massa will likely take on Perez or someone, same with Red Bull though they tend towards STR drivers.

I just don't think its fair to say Sutil's career is on it's last legs, it suggests Sutil is performing worse and worse. Its more a case that Sutil's career is at a critical point this season, he has to at least match or beat Di Resta and he really needs to get into a different team. Right now is his best chance to secure a better drive (as his stock is quite good, thanks to 2010) and I don't think he is going to get another such chance.
At worst, Sutil will always find a seat in the backmarker teams, and he does bring some personal sponsorship. Perhaps Williams might be interested though its not really a step up for Sutil.

 

[ExigeEvan]

It's not too hard to believe it's an accident. He's a German who's far more used to bashing Steins together than delicate champagne flutes.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

And I can't imagine anyone running like THIS would ever be involved in something like this

What happened is that Sutil got pissed after Lux refused his advances. 💡

 

[Touring Mars]

From here...

In response to Lux's statement, Sutil's manager Manfred Zimmermann confirmed the driver will strongly defend himself if needed.

?

unless Mr Lux was rummaging around in a bar bin at the time.

Hmmm... I once attended a LAN event, and we were unceremoniously turfed out of the room by the Whisky Society, as we were double booked for the same room, but they got priority over us because they had paying guests - and whisky. Anyhoo, I discovered a bin that they put some of their empties in, and some of the empties were of pretty expensive drams. I thought about nicking one and decanting my cheapo whisky in it in order to impress my friends the next time they came to my place for one of my vol-au-vents and aperitifs nights (first Tuesday of the month, pencil it in your diaries folks...). Now, I'm not saying that this is what happened here, but...

Additionally, it has been known for slightly less sophisticated parties to use bins full of iced water as beer (or maybe even champagne?) coolers, hence I have found myself having a rummage in many a dustbin over the years...

 

[F1 fan]

It really depends how this all pans out, but if it doesn't spiral out of control and Sutil doesn't get criminal charges, then Mercedes is still a possibility. I think Sutil has done enough to deserve a chance for a top seat, its just unfortaunte that circumstances are going to deny him that - Renault is obviously a bit difficult now, Mercedes might be more inclined to take Di Resta, McLaren are all sorted, Ferrari if they ever replace Massa will likely take on Perez or someone, same with Red Bull though they tend towards STR drivers.

I just don't think its fair to say Sutil's career is on it's last legs, it suggests Sutil is performing worse and worse. Its more a case that Sutil's career is at a critical point this season, he has to at least match or beat Di Resta and he really needs to get into a different team. Right now is his best chance to secure a better drive (as his stock is quite good, thanks to 2010) and I don't think he is going to get another such chance.
At worst, Sutil will always find a seat in the backmarker teams, and he does bring some personal sponsorship. Perhaps Williams might be interested though its not really a step up for Sutil.

Personally, I'd like to see kobayashi get a move to Ferrari or Red Bull. I hope he doesn't get overlooked, as that would be criminal. His performances have been amazing. Some people have been mentioning him in their "silly season" predictions and some have just left him at Sauber. He's too exciting a driver to remain in the midfield. Sorry for the off topic. Think I'm going to try and revive the driver transfer market thread.

It's not too hard to believe it's an accident. He's a German who's far more used to bashing Steins together than delicate champagne flutes.

I somehow think it's safe to assume that Adrian doesn't drink much beer. F1 drivers have such a strict diet. Personally, I see Sutil as more of a wine drinker anyway. It fits in better with the classic pianist stereotype.

 

[Omnis]

Lux like someone's in trouble.

 

[Hollidog]

If this turns out to be true then I also certainly can't see Sutil at Renault. I also think it is unlikely that he will end up at any teams that use Renault engines. (who else other than RBR use Renault engines)

I dont see how one could "accidentally" stab someone in the throat. If it's true then Sutil must be a madman.

 

[F1 fan]

If this turns out to be true then I also certainly can't see Sutil at Renault. I also think it is unlikely that he will end up at any teams that use Renault engines. (who else other than RBR use Renault engines)

I dont see how one could "accidentally" stab someone in the throat. If it's true then Sutil must be a madman.

Team Lotus use Renault engines. I think it's safe to say he won't be going there either, then again Lux isn't actually part of Renault. He is an employee of Genii capital, which I believe owns the vast majority of the Renault team. If i'm correct, Renault (as in the road car manufacturer) only own 10%. It could be even less though, as I don't tend to follow the business side of F1.

Renault (the manufacturer)supply the engines to Renault(F1, owned by genii, sponsored by lotus(the manufacturer)), Red Bull Racing and Team Lotus (owned by Tony Fernandes, owner of Caterham, in a legal battle with Lotus(the manufacturer)). He could still drive for a team with Renault engines. It all depends on whether Genii Capital have priority and/or influence with Renault (again, the manufacturer).

 

[TenEightyOne]

Personally, I see Sutil as more of a wine drinker anyway. It fits in better with the classic pianist stereotype.

Utter pants

Lux like someone's in trouble.

If you weren't already a Super-Mod you should become one just for that

The good news here is for Paul Di Resta (capital D? not sure...).

He's made a great start to the season for a rookie and this is his chance to capitalise on his standing in the team. He seems a genuinely nice guy and it would be good to see him do well!

 

[TenEightyOne]

Vijay Mallya confirms that Sutil's immediate future with the team is secure and that no action can be considered until such a time as legal proceedings have been formally filed in Germany.

It remains to be seen whether that will happen... but if it does then it's possible that The Bernster might act before Force India!

Remember Bertrand Gachot?

I can't see this leading to the discovery of a new Schumacher, but still...

 

[Robin]

Wouldn't all this fall under Chinese law as it happened in Shanghai and therefore would be investigated and tried there?

 

[prisonermonkeys]

It remains to be seen whether that will happen... but if it does then it's possible that The Bernster might act before Force India!

By "The Bernster", I'm assuming you mean Bernie Ecclestone. If so, he can't act until legal action is launched. He has nothing to justify removing Sutil because Sutil technically hasn't done anything wrong. If and when criminal action is launched, then Sutil could reasonably be described as being guilty of bringing the sport into disrepute. And it's unlikely that Ecclestone will act before Force India unless Vijay Mallya shows no intention of acting as appropriate (ie refusing to drop Sutil when Sutil is guilty of bringing the sport into disrepute).

 

[TenEightyOne]

By "The Bernster", I'm assuming you mean Bernie Ecclestone.

How else might The Bernster be?

If so, he can't act until legal action is launched.

Not so. Neither the FIA nor The Bernster have ever waited for legal confirmation or charge before issuing disrepute charges in any previous cases. External legal affairs are not the bailiwick of the FIA insofar as they don't refer specifically to actions/assets of team properties.

He has nothing to justify removing Sutil because Sutil technically hasn't done anything wrong.

In fairness neither you nor I know what happened that night. We don't know who saw it and we don't know what The Bernster knows. All we can be sure of is that his hand's on the tiller.

 

[IceMan PJN]

There is no part of this story that doesn't make my jaw drop.

Discuss. Or stare agape at the screen.

Somehow I've managed to overlook this thread all this time. A while back, when I first heard about this Sutil incident, I texted about it to a buddy. He thought Sutil stabbing a guy with a broken beer bottle in a bar brawl sounded bad***... until he checked into it further and read that it was a kerfuffle with a wine glass. That doesn't sound quite as bad***.

 

[Danny]

This isn't really related to the thread, but this doesn't really require it's own thread.

HOW LONG ARE ADRIAN SUTIL'S ARMS?!

 

[Touring Mars]

This isn't really related to the thread, but this doesn't really require it's own thread.

HOW LONG ARE ADRIAN SUTIL'S ARMS?!

I think he should be more worried about the long arm of the law...

 

[prisonermonkeys]

HOW LONG ARE ADRIAN SUTIL'S ARMS?!

About as long as mine. My hands stop just short of my knees, too.

 

[YellowG1]

Wouldn't all this fall under Chinese law as it happened in Shanghai and therefore would be investigated and tried there?

Don't quote me but I'm pretty sure you can still be prosecuted by the victim's home jurisdiction as well as the jurisdiction where the crime takes place. You can definitely be sued under this principle.

 

[Submerged]

....depends if you had a visa and was a recognised national as well.

 

[SUPER NUMBBER]

Lux like someone's in trouble.

And getting in trouble is a Luxury he cannot afford at this time...

 

[hawkeye122]

Force India ought to keep Sutil if they have a choice. And with that, Send Nico over to Merc, Nico and Nico.

If he really hit they guy, why would he? Is there any specific reason, or does anybody know yet?

 

[F1 fan]

Force India ought to keep Sutil if they have a choice. And with that, Send Nico over to Merc, Nico and Nico.

If he really hit they guy, why would he? Is there any specific reason, or does anybody know yet?

Details are very thin on the ground. I'm sure we'll find out at some point.

 

[Peter.]

About as long as mine. My hands stop just short of my knees, too.

As are mine.

Meanwhile, Sutil is still sounding comfortable in that FI seat. Looks like this might blow over.

 

[boiltheocean]

Adrian Sutil charged with causing GBH.

http://f1orbit.com/2012-01-12/adrian-sutil-charged-with-causing-grievous-bodily-harm/

 

[SuperShouden]

I like how he takes off his sunglasses and there's another pair of sunglasses underneath.