The death of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez Tuesday, has caused a ripple effect into F1.
Williams driver Pastor Maldonado is heavily funded by main sponsor PDVSA, the state-owned Venezuelan oil company, and their subsidiaries, and several observers believe that this will end Maldonado´s F1 career.
It should be noted that while Chavez was an avid race fan and supported several other drivers from Venezuela, and that there had been great concerns about the legality of Maldonado´s contract, the driver himself should not feel any pressure regarding his future. The contract is there and it works and even if Chavez´ party doesn´t retain power after the coming election, the new government will most likely keep the sponsorship deal, since it is supoorting new drivers on the international racing scene.
In other words, don´t expect anything to change at Williams this season.
