Top Stories of 2017, #13: Manor disappears from the F1 grid

There is a certain irony in Felipe Nasr being absent from the 2017 Formula 1 grid after being the man who basically ended Manor's hopes of continuing to compete in the sport.

Nasr's ninth-place finish in the 2016 Brazilian Grand Prix put his Sauber team ahead of Manor in the constructors' championship, effectively dealing the final blow to the struggling Banbury-based squad.

Like that of all the new teams - HRT and Lotus/Caterham - that entered Formula 1 in 2010 alongside it, the story of Manor's path in the sport was one filled with ups and downs. And, to its credit, the outfit formerly known as Virgin and Marussia outlived its rivals and enjoyed more success than them.

Serious doubts about the future of the team started around November of 2016, when team owner Stephen Fitzpatrick announced he had agreed terms with a new investor that would inject cash into the struggling operation.

However, after talks with race promoter Tavo Hellmund broke down during the winter, speculation was rife about the Manor being on the verge of going into administration, something that was confirmed at the start of January, when Just Racing Services Ltd - the company running the team - appointed administrators FRP Advisory LLP.

The desperate search for a buyer began in angst, with time running out as the team had to prepare its new car for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.

The new regulations for 2017 added a further hurdle in the process, as Manor needed to produce a completely new single-seater for the season that would begin some two months after going into administration.

While the team and most of its staff continued to work in the hope of being as ready as possible in the case of finding a buyer, a buyout offer from an unnamed company was received mid-January, just days before the deadline that was set by FRP Advisory.

However, the deadline passed with no news of a buyer, and all hope of rescuing Manor was gone by January 27, when it was announced that the team would shut down after failing to find a new owner.

"Regrettably since the appointment of administrators no investment has been secured in the limited time available to continue the Group in its present form," said FRP Advisory at the time.

"With no sustainable operational or financial structure in place to maintain the Group as a going concern, the joint administrators have now ceased trading JRSL and unfortunately have had to send all staff home from work today Friday 27 January."

A wind tunnel model of the Manor MRT07 was revealed by its staff on the same day that the shutdown was announced, confirming the team had pushed until the final moment to continue racing in F1. But it was not to be.

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