Pastor Maldonado
A bit of a surprise option, but Maldonado’s departure from Renault leaves him with only Manor to target if he wants to race in Formula 1 again this season. The Venezuelan has a number of obvious strengths, with the fact he is a grand prix winner worth remembering while talking about the hefty sponsorship he previously brought with him from PDVSA.
While that money looks much less certain at this stage, there could well be enough in the pot to secure a seat with Manor, even if it would be less than he was bringing to his previous teams. Comments from manager Nicolas Todt that he wouldn’t join Manor are likely to be an attempt to drive down the price of a seat - with a Mercedes power unit and Williams rear end the car should be competitive - but Maldonado may also have entered the running too late.
Chances: Moderate
