With Marussia Motors, the parent company of the Marussia Formula One team, having apparently suspended its car-making operations, the F1 squad is now under new ownership.
Team spokesperson Tracy Novak has told Russian publication R-Sport that another company, Marussia Communications Limited, has taken control.
However, she would not comment on when said ownership change took place and if MCL was the same company as that of an entity of the same name that was supposedly registered in Dublin.
“There is no link between the two companies (Marussia Motors and Marussia F1 Team) financially or technically,” Novak said. “The F1 team has been an independent operation for some time.
“The F1 team has had a positive start to the 2014 season and looks forward to continued success in the pursuit of its racing ambitions.”
Marussia Motors entered F1 in 2010 after purchasing a controlling stake in the Virgin Racing team, which became known as Marussia Virgin Racing in 2011. The team became simply ‘Marussia’ in 2012.
The car company is known primarily for its B1 and B2 supercars, but according to R-Sport, those projects are no longer operational and that its staff in Moscow has reportedly “left the company en masse and joined a government-run technical institute.”
Novak, however, says that the apparent problems at Marussia Motors won’t hamper the F1 team’s day-to-day business. The team is headquartered in Banbury, England.
“The supercar project was ambitious, but it is disappointing that it was unable to get to market,” she added. “There is no impact whatsoever on the Formula 1 team’s operation.”
Marussia’s F1 team fields programs for Max Chilton and Jules Bianchi. So far, the team has an early grip on the 10th-place spot in the Constructor’s Championship that is coveted by them and rival Caterham.
Chilton has already claimed two 13th-place finishes this season, including last weekend at Bahrain. No doubt those will help Marussia’s cause as they seek to claim the 10th spot and the sizable amount of prize money that goes with it.
