Thursday 19 November 2009

Who goes where in 2010

Following the recent flurry of announcements, here is ITV.com/F1's guide to how the 2010 Formula 1 field is coming together.

McLaren-Mercedes

Confirmed: Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton

Martin Whitmarsh's team has pulled off the coup of the winter by pairing the last world champions. Luring Button away from Brawn to join lifelong McLaren man Hamilton gives the Woking squad a mighty - and very sponsor-friendly - line-up.

Mercedes

No drivers confirmed

Nico Rosberg is understood to have signed for Mercedes, and with Button opting for McLaren, it seems an all-German line-up could be on the cards, with Nick Heidfeld - a Merc protege in his youth - mentioned in connection with the second seat. Kimi Raikkonen's management have hinted they would be willing to listen to a Mercedes approach, but the team is surely unlikely to offer Raikkonen the "perfect deal" he desires - unless Mercedes decides a Rosberg/Heidfeld line-up is just too lacking in star power.

Red Bull

Confirmed: Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber

Red Bull took itself out of the silly season early on by swiftly announcing it would retain rising superstar Vettel and gritty, proven winner Webber - a just reward for their 2009 success.

Ferrari

Confirmed: Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa

After years and years of rumours, Alonso has made his Ferrari move. The team is confident the recovering Massa will easily be fit enough to take up his place in the second car.

Williams-Cosworth

Confirmed: Rubens Barrichello and Nico Hulkenberg

Williams has gone for a blend of youth and experience - hiring Barrichello after his 2009 renaissance at Brawn, and promoting highly-rated test driver Hulkenberg following his impressive GP2 title triumph.

Renault

Confirmed: Robert Kubica

Despite some lingering doubt over the company's F1 commitment, Renault has signed up Kubica to fill the void left by Alonso. The silence over his team-mate's identity could be related to those future rumours. Timo Glock was briefly favourite but opted for Manor, and Heikki Kovalainen has also been mentioned, but Romain Grosjean will be fortunate to get another chance after his poor half season.

Force India-Mercedes

No drivers confirmed

The talented but erratic Adrian Sutil is expected to get a fourth season at the team, while Tonio Liuzzi's chances of staying on look less certain after he failed to maintain momentum following his brilliant comeback at Monza.




Toro Rosso-Ferrari

Confirmed: Sebastien Buemi

Toro Rosso put out a statement on its website several months ago effectively saying 'Buemi and Jamie Alguersuari are staying on, so leave us out of the rumours please'. Since then, there has been a little vagueness over Alguersuari's status, although none of the other Red Bull drivers - his most likely rivals for the seat - look ready for F1 at present.

US F1

No drivers confirmed

An endless array of American racing superstars have been mentioned as 'possible eventual candidates' for US F1, but the team bosses do not expect to have an American driver in the project's first year. Right now, there are few clues as to who will occupy the seats in 2010.

Campos Meta

Confirmed: Bruno Senna

Senna gets his deserved F1 break with the new Spanish squad. Campos was originally expected to sign experienced McLaren tester Pedro de la Rosa, but looks like it might require a driver with funding as the loss of the budget cap came as a blow.

Manor

Confirmed: Timo Glock

Ex-Toyota man Glock will lead the Manor team, which is expected to get Virgin backing, and will probably have a young driver as his team-mate.

Lotus

No drivers confirmed

Jarno Trulli's close ties with Lotus technical boss Mike Gascoyne could see him lead the team. Gascoyne is keen to have two experienced drivers, but team chief Tony Fernandes has hinted at a 'youth and experience' pairing. Both have dismissed early rumours of a race seat for top Malaysian driver Fairuz Fauzy.

Qadbak/Sauber

No drivers confirmed

The former BMW team remains in a state of flux until the FIA officially awards it the entry left vacant by Toyota's withdrawal. It looked like this team might be Heidfeld's best bet until the Raikkonen/Button situation opened up bigger opportunities for him. Ex-BMW tester Christian Klien could be an option, though.

Waiting in the wings

Unsigned 2009 drivers: Jarno Trulli, Heikki Kovalainen, Giancarlo Fisichella, Kazuki Nakajima, Nelson Piquet, Romain Grosjean, Kamui Kobayashi

Fisichella says he is open to any race team offers that he could combine with his new life as Ferrari's reserve. Piquet has financial backing and wants an F1 return despite his role in the Renault race-fixing scandal. Kobayashi looked a dead cert for a 2010 Toyota drive before the team's pull-out, but Toyota has hinted it could help him find a slot elsewhere. Fellow Toyota protege Nakajima's chances look more remote given his poor 2009 form for Williams.

Blasts from the past: Jacques Villeneuve, Pedro de la Rosa, Christian Klien, Alex Wurz, Anthony Davidson, Takuma Sato, Franck Montagny

Former world champion Villeneuve is openly chasing an F1 return three years after his mid-season split with BMW. The sidelined Sato has been approaching teams, while many would love to see his former Super Aguri team-mate Davidson back on the grid, but the Briton's perennial lack of sponsorship makes a return a long shot. Montagny, another ex-Super Aguri man, has also been the subject of surprise F1 comeback gossip.

From GP2 and beyond: Lucas di Grassi, Vitaly Petrov, Pastor Maldonado, Andy Soucek, Karun Chandhok, Bertrand Baguette, Paul di Resta

GP2 frontrunners Petrov, di Grassi and Maldonado hope the new teams might open F1 opportunities for them, while Formula 2 champion Soucek is keen to capitalise on his forthcoming prize Williams test. Scottish Mercedes protege di Resta - a star in the DTM touring car series - was briefly linked to Force India last year and Mercedes' greater F1 involvement could help his chances of landing somewhere.

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