MANOR
Manor looks like being a Q1 dropout certainty once again, but how far the team has come should not be overlooked. This time last year it didn’t have a car ready to run in Australia, with only one qualifying and starting the race in Malaysia as the team breathed back into life having exited administration. Fast forward 12 months and there has been a major transformation.
Most importantly, a change in management sees John Booth and Graeme Lowdon no longer part of the team they fought so hard to save, but the pair will enjoy racing at Le Mans this year instead. They are replaced in part by the experience of Dave Ryan, with input from Pat Fry, while a Mercedes power unit and Williams technical partnership adds further strength.
Manor remains a very small team but is doing exactly what such a team should in providing a platform for Mercedes protege Pascal Wehrlein to prove himself, while Rio Haryanto ensures a major new market is opened up as Indonesia has its first F1 driver. The pair are likely to be off the back of the midfield, but Manor will be much closer to the pace than in previous years.
Silbermann's view
It says a lot about what really matters in F1 that, although John Booth and Graeme Lowdon are definitely “real racers” the various incarnations of the team we now call Manor has never had the wherewithal to go racing. Despite the right attitude and all the will in the world, for the past few seasons their main role was to prevent the F1 grid sinking below the 20 car mark, which would have been very bad for everyone including Mr Ecclestone. I expect that to change this season, thanks to the Mercedes engine, a technical deal with Williams, young Mr Wehrlein at the wheel and Dave Ryan and Pat Fry at the helm. How ironic if these two former McLaren men can outpace their alma mater.
