Pastor Maldonado’s young cousin, Manuel Maldonado, has announced that he will race in the British Formula 3 championship this year with Fortec Motorsports.
Maldonado Sr. raced in F1 between 2011 and 2016, famously winning the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix with Williams, but was better known for his on-track aggression and numerous penalties for clashes.
Looking to follow in his cousin’s footsteps - reaching F1, that is, not getting an unwanted reputation - 17-year-old Manuel Maldonado raced in the Italian F4 series last year, scoring a best finish of P12 at Adria.
Maldonado Jr. will now move up to the British BRDC F3 series for 2017, as confirmed on Friday.
“It’s a great opportunity for me to have signed with Fortec, I have worked with them in the past and I am very happy to be here,” Maldonado said.
“I know that we can develop well together. Now we keep preparing hard for the upcoming season and it’s an honour for me to represent my country Venezuela in a British championship.”
“We are very pleased to welcome Manuel to the team for the season ahead, and also to have completed our line-up for 2017 BRDC British F3,” added Fortec manager Russ Dixon.
“Manuel is a talented young driver and we are looking forward to helping him progress throughout the year.”
Pastor Maldonado has been without a race seat since leaving Lotus after the 2015 season, despite angling to move into IndyCar last year with the now-defunct KV Racing operation.