F1 driver death risk too high: lawyers

Putting a Formula One driver in a car he isn't fitted for would create an unacceptable risk of death, an F1 team's lawyers say.

Swiss F1 team Sauber is fighting in a Melbourne courtroom to keep former driver Giedo Van Der Garde from racing in this weekend's Melbourne Grand Prix.

Mr Van Der Garde launched legal action claiming he had been guaranteed a driver spot in 2015 before Sauber reneged on the deal.

Sauber lawyer Rodney Garratt said Mr Van Der Garde had not trained in the team's car, and had not gone through the two-week custom seat-fitting process.

Putting Mr Van Der Garde in a car he wasn't fitted for or trained in would put other drivers and support staff at an "unacceptable" risk of death, he said.

"Mr Van Der Garde has no experience driving the c34 Ferrari and would not have sufficient time to learn," Mr Garratt told the international arbitration court on Monday.

Sauber's two current drivers, Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr, were in court to hear the opening statements.

The hearing continues before Justice Clyde Croft.