Renault are the latest to suffer the consequences of the financial crisis as their principal sponsor, the Dutch ING bank, has decided not to renew its sponsorship agreement at the end of this year.
The ING bank is looking to shed 7,000 jobs in a bid to save £949 million. Formula One is an expensive business, with some of the major teams spending well over €300 million each year to get their little cars whizzing round the track.
Efforts are currently being made to reduce costs by around 30%, but the FIA would like to see a spending target of €50 million by the end of 2010.
Honda have already fallen by the wayside and BMW-Sauber have just lost their main sponsor, Credit Suisse.