Manor CEO Graeme Lowdon says he’s open to returning to Formula 1 if Liberty Media reduces the costs of running a competitive team.
The team entered F1 the series in 2010 under promises of a budget cap, which never came to fruition.
After multiple name and driver changes, and just one point scoring finish at the 2014 Monaco Grand Prix courtesy of Jules Bianchi, Lowden and Booth departed the team at the end of 2015 to enter endurance racing.
Manor continued in F1 in 2016, scoring points in Austria and narrowly losing out on 10th in the teams’ championship to Sauber in the penultimate race.
However, they closed for good at the end of 2016. leaving just 10 teams on the F1 grid.
Manor is entering LMP1’s privateer class for the 2018/19 WEC ‘super-season’, after two successful years in the LMP2 class.
While they have no immediate plans to return to F1, Lowdon admitted it’s something he’s interested in for the future.
“If nothing changes—if there is no cost cap and the costs stay the same—then we cannot go back because it’s impossible to race against the big teams,” Lowdon told Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat.
“We have heard from the FIA and Liberty (Media) that work is being done to reduce the cost for private teams.
“In that case, we are interested in returning. Both myself and Booth have unfinished business in F1.”
Following Manor’s departure from F1, the grid was reduced to 10 teams, with Liberty Media making its intentions clear to expand the grid to at least 12 healthy, stable teams by 2021 – when its new engine regulations are set to be introduced.
