It was announced during the summer break that Rio Haryanto would be replaced by Esteban Ocon due to funding issues in his contract. Haryanto would be demoted to the team’s reserve driver. The demotion has had its negative aspects, as Manor loses a major sponsor.
Pertamina, a state-owned Indonesian oil and natural gas company based in Jakarta, has announced that they have terminated their sponsorship agreement with Manor. Haryanto brought the company to the team as a sponsor, so it was inevitable that the company would withdraw when Haryanto lost his racing seat with the team.
The company name was previously featured on the rear wing of the car. Reports suggest that Pertamina had paid the team an estimated €3 million to fund the first half of Haryanto’s contract with the team. The company told The Jakarta Post, a local media publication, that Manor Racing had given Pertamina the option to continue advertising with the team for the remainder of the 2016 season, but the company declined the offer.
Rio Haryanto lost his racing seat after the German Grand Prix, as his financial backers failed to pay the remaining €7.5 million in his €15 million contract to racing with Manor for 2016. Haryanto could have lost his seat after the Hungarian Grand Prix, but Manor temporarily extended his contract for the German Grand Prix, which was the final race before summer break. The Indonesian Youth and Sports Ministry reports that they had made a request to use the state budget to fund the rest of Haryanto’s venture, but it was denied by lawmakers.
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