F1 Fanatic

Since Red-bull, Mclaren and Mercedes have signed two drivers, i’ll put guess work into the others.

Ferrari
Alonso – confirmed
Massa – I think Massa will end up staying, they have no reason to replace him. Unfortunately, while Ferrari have Alonso, they want a number 2 driver, not a young hotshot.

Lotus
Raikkonen – confirmed
Grosjean – I see no reason for Lotus to change their line up

Sauber
Kovalainen/Kobayashi – Heikki would be a good replacement for Kamui but I think he could end up staying another year.
Gutierrez – Has to be him, otherwise i don’t see how they could possibly keep their million dollar sponsorship.

Force India
Di Resta
Hulkenburg – Both drivers have lost out via the McLaren Vs Hamilton row, so they should stay

Williams
Maldonado – may not have a contract, but sponsorship speaks more than words, although despite his crashes, he’s a very fast driver.
Bottas – Team love him, so does everyone else, while i feel upset for Bruno, it seems its Bottas’s time to shine

STR
Vergne
Ricciardo – neither are going to change unless one has a horrific drop in performance, its just how the rosso system works

Marussia
Glock – contract
Chilton/Pic – really depends, Pic may move up, hes got the money, and chiltons a hot favourite. but by what we’ve seen before, the second driver will always get dropped.

Caterham
Kovalainen/van der Garde – If Heikki stays that is, Van der garde is the reserve so he’s high on the replacement list
Petov/Pic/Razia/Valsechhi – If petrovs got no cash? he’s gone, while Pic may want to ‘move up’, it really depends. The other two meanwhile have had connections with the team at some point in their career so you never know.

HRT
de la Rosa – contract
“Highest bidder” – what more can i say?

I’ve been going back over some old stuff, and it seems that despite rumours of a pre-contract between Vettel an Ferrari for 2014, Christian Horner is on the record as saying that Vettel is under contract until 2015. Since this is on the record and the pre-contract is only a rumour, I’m much more inclined to believe it – which means that if there is a vacancy at Ferrari next year, it will be for two years at the very least, which will make it much more appealing for young drivers.

Interesting comment from David Croft during the Korean Grand Prix: “it is something of an open secret that Hulkenberg and Gutierrez will race for Sauber next year”.

I don’t know what to make of Croft’s statement in the sense that in the next couple of days we’re surely gonna hear everyone saying Koba is gone, purely based on his counterperformance in Korea, and we’ll have a faster spinning rumour mill, for sure.

However, Kobayashi is known to be “transfer listed” by Sauber ever since mid-season so, there’s definitely something cooking up at Sauber. With Carlos Slim’s money staying with the swiss team it’s almost certain Gutierrez will step up to take the second seat. It remains to be seen whether it’s gonna be Hulkenberg or Alguersuari replacing Koba.

I don’t see Sauber moving further forward than they are now

This. Especially since they won’t benefit from Key’s contribution next year and Mercedes for sure won’t be in reach anymore with Hamilton at the wheel. Plus, there’s Williams behind who have a good foundation to build a competitive car on in 2013. Changing both drivers and bringing Gutierrez who is VERY inexperienced in might be a bit of a gamble. I’m not saying keeping Kobayashi is the best option but it’s not necessarily the worst either, in this whole climate. A bit of stability might benefit them.

As far as replacing Koba this season goes, that’s not gonna happen. It would be plain stupid to bring Gutierrez in instead of a podium scoring driver while Sauber are challenging Mercedes for 5th in the WCC and are trying to keep a flying Force India at bay in 7th. Williams, Torro Rosso, Caterham can afford this risk. Sauber can not.

Hulkenberg might have what it takes to het a Ferrari drive, but a lot of that is extrapolated from his performances to date. I don’t think he has quite done enough to convince Ferrari that they should take him, but it is only a matter of time before he does so.

I have stuck my ear to the ground and heard something of an outlandish rumor. I hear this was Kobayashi’s last race. Gutierrez steps in for Abu Dhabi and India, before taking part in the young driver test (he’s applicable as he would only have had 2 GPs) and finish the season off, before Hulkenberg steps into Perez’s seat next year.

I’m also hearing in the paddock that Sauber Hulkenberg is a done deal

So, the question of what Kimi Raikkonen will do next has been answered: it’s a deal with Makia Clothing.

http://store.makiaclothing.com/fw1213/makia-racing.html

I won’t post the video, because it’s not G-rated. But there is no stunning revelation of joining a new time. In fact, it’s entirely anti-climactic.

Vijay Mallya has suggested Adrian Sutil could make a return:

“Never forget I always have the potential of considering Sutil again. Sutil is always quick. So there are many options.

“I would certainly consider him,” he added. Sutil would be a familiar face having spent his entire Formula One career with the team from 2007, when it was still called Spyker, to the end of last year.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/racing/top-stories/Vijay-Mallya-keeps-Adrian-Sutil-in-mind/articleshow/17004659.cms