Marussia team forced into administration

The struggling Marussia Formula One team have followed rivals Caterham into administration and will miss this weekend’s US Grand Prix, administrators FRP Advisory LLP said in a statement on Monday.

The move will leave just nine teams and 18 cars on the starting grid for the race in Austin, Texas, which is followed immediately by the Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo. The season’s finale is in Abu Dhabi on November 23.

Caterham went into admnistration last week, with their factory closed and the staff told to stay away until further notice.

“With the existing shareholder unable to provide the required level of funding, the (Marussia) senior management team has worked tirelessly to bring new investment to the team to secure its long term future, but regrettably has been unable to do so within the time available,” said FRP’s joint administrator Geoff Rowley.

“Therefore, they have been left with no alternative but to place the Company into administration.”

The Ferrari-powered team were already reeling from the life-threatening injury suffered by their French driver Jules Bianchi in Japan three weeks ago and entered only one car at what was nominally a home race in Russia.

Bianchi, 25, remains in a critical condition in hospital in Japan with serious brain trauma after crashing into a recovery tractor at Suzuka.

Malaysian-registered Caterham are 11th in the championship and have yet to score a point.