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Pastor Maldonado Might Not Compete in the Next Season of Formula 1

Pastor Maldonado is in danger of losing his drive at Renault because his sponsor, Venezuelan oil company PDVSA, is running late with payments.
Pastor Maldonado 1 photo
Photo: Srdjan Suki
To keep him running in the Formula 1, PDVSA pays Renault no less than $50 million. The money is several weeks overdue, mostly because the Venezuelan economy is struggling as a result of a massive drop in oil prices.

If the payment is not made soon, Maldonado might be replaced by former McLaren driver Kevin Magnussen, considered one of the most talented drivers without a current place on the F1 grid for the next season.

As British novice Jolyon Palmer is the only Renault driver confirmed for 2016, the team must validate the other driver in time for a major media launch in early February.

According to a Renault spokesman, "It's speculation at the moment. We have a contract with Pastor. That is the current situation. Who knows what could happen by Australia but, at the moment, we are going forward with Pastor and Jolyon."

Quite recently, Magnussen was given a tour of the Renault factory in Oxfordshire, and some voices think this is a tactic to try to put pressure on PDVSA to pay the money it owes.

Pastor Maldonado has won only one race in his F1 career, the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix for Williams, and is well known for his many race incidents that also brought him the nickname "Crash-tor." Even a website devoted to his accidents was created, where people can see how long it has passed since his last crash and where it happened.

Maldonado is racing in Formula 1 thanks to former Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, who arranged for his sponsorship with the PDVSA. Even though Chavez died in 2013, the funding has continued, as BBC reports.

The 2016 season of Formula 1 starts on March 20, with the first Grand Prix being hosted by Australia, in Melbourne, on the street circuit around Albert Park Lake.
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