Lowdon and Booth set to quit Manor

Manor’s Team Principal Graeme Lowdon and Sporting Director John Booth are set to resign at the end of the season. The pair have been with the team since its creation for the 2010 season, when it was called Virgin Racing.

It is believed that their relationship with team owner Stephen Fitzpatrick has turned sour over a disagreement regarding the future of the team. Fitzpatrick is the founder of the energy company Ovo, and brought Manor out of administration when the team’s future looked in doubt at the end of last year.

It’s been a year of rebuilding and simply surviving for Manor. Progress is being made, however, with a Mercedes engine deal for next year, and their partnership with Williams Advanced Engineering being reignited, they looked to be in a strong position to become a team to be taken seriously next year.

They are improving financially also. FOM prize money is given out for top 10 finishes of the previous two years, and Jules Bianchi’s 9th place finish at Monaco last year means that Manor will be in the best financially placed they have ever been.

It is expected that a significant number of personnel will follow Lowdon and Booth’s exit, and that they will only stay if there is a change of heart at the most senior level.

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