F1 Fanatic

So who’s going to end up where in 2013?

Obviously Davide Valsecchi won’t be returning as he’s won the championship. And with Coloni disappearing for reasons unknown that leaves just 24 places to be filled.

Who will end up where? Which drivers from other series deserve to make the step up to GP2? Or will more drivers be looking to race in Formula Renault 3.5?

Addax
DAMS
Racing Engineering
iSport
Lotus
Caterham
Trident
Super Nova
Rapax
Arden
Ocean
Carlin

To get things started here’s some information from @motorstv:

Rio Haryanto says he’s considering offers from Carlin, DAMS and Rapax for the 2013 GP2 season.

— Motors TV (@MotorsTV) October 9, 2012

Obviously Mitch Evans is testing with Arden later this month but apparently DAMS are also interested in the GP3 champion.

I’m very interested to see how Haryanto gets on next year. This year he’s made some rookie mistakes – as might be expected – but also showed good pace (particularly in wet conditions) and bold but well-judged overtaking (think Kobayashi style!). If he can make the step up he could certainly win a race or two next year.
Staying with Carlin would be a good option in that 1) he knows the team and 2) there’s an obvious route into F1 with Marussia (whether that’s desirable is another matter…)
Going to DAMS would, though, potentially give him even better opportunities. Obviously they’ve led Grosjean and Valsecchi to their titles and allowed a talented rookie to shine (Nasr). On the flip side, it means any shortcomings on the driver’s part will be shown up even more (e.g. Pal Varhaug’s disastrous year alongside Grosjean). Haryanto and Nasr would be an exciting line-up.
Rapax is on paper the least promising option. Since Maldonado’s championship they haven’t achieved much success – although arguably this is partly down to their driver choice.

As for Razia’s future, I can’t see him stopping now. Based on an interview I heard/read at some point he’d stepped up his commitment this year and felt it had paid dividends; I’d be surprised if he doesn’t race in another category even if he can’t find an F1 seat.

I think a lot of the grid is going to be decided by the calendar. The expansion to Malaysia, the Bahrain double-header and Singapore drove up costs, and with it, forced the talented-but-underfunded drivers out. So I think a lot will hinge on where the races take place.

AutoGP racers Facundo Regalia and Adrian Quaife-Hobbs will be testing GP2 cars and are surely eyeing seats in the category.

Here’s my best guess at what the GP2 line-up will be:

Addax: Johnny Cecotto & Jake Rosenzweig
I can’t see why Addax would change their line-up. Cecotto had some great races this year (Win in Monaco) and if Rosenzweig still has cash then he’ll probably stay

DAMS: Felipe Nasr & Arthur Pic
Obviously Valsecchi won’t hang around, which means DAMS will take Pic from their WSR team and put him in their GP2 outfit. Pic could definitely make it into F1 with the right exposure and results. I can’t see Nasr going anywhere for next year

Racing Engineering: Nathanaël Berthon & Dani Clos
With Leimer being linked to a switch to DTM with BMW, Racing Engineering will need to fill a seat. So why not Dani Clos? Spanish driver, Spanish team and an accomplished racer.

iSport: Marcus Ericsson & Jolyon Palmer
Both drivers did solid jobs last season and I see no reason why the team would want to let them go, or why the drivers would want to leave

Lotus: James Calado & Daniel Abt.
With Esteban Gutiérrez about to put pen to paper on a Sauber contract, Lotus will turn to the GP3 vice-champion Daniel Abt to take his seat. It’s a natural progression for Abt who drove superbly all year and narrowly missed out on the title. Calado had a great season and will want to stay to gain experience and show his skills in front of the F1 boys

Caterham: Rodolfo González & Alexander Rossi
Van der Garde is almost certain to graduate to F1 next year and Rossi’s strong links with Caterham may see him switch from WSR to GP2. Rossi could well become Caterham’s reserve driver next year and so having him race at the F1 venues will be beneficial to Caterham’s F1 team

Trident: Stéphane Richelmi & Julián Leal
Another team I can’t see changing their driver line-up. None of the drivers in their GP3 team showed they’re ready to move up to the GP2 series

Team Lazarus: Luca Fillippi & René Binder
After his antics in Singapore Canamasas will surely be dropped by the team and replaced by an experienced race-winner in Fillippi. Binder will most likely stay with the team

Rapax: Rio Harayanto & Stefano Coletti
Rio Harayanto will leave Carlin (more on that later) and will move to Rapax. Coletti having just moved to the team will stay

Arden: Mitch Evans & Lewis Williamson
Mitch Evans naturally moves up from Arden’s GP3 team to GP2 after winning the championship. Bianchi’s promotion to a Force India race seat means Razia becomes the reserve driver and leaves GP2. Arden will take on Lewis Williamson to take Simon Trummer’s place after a dissapointing season

Ocean Racing Technology: Nigel Melker & Kevin Ceccon
Melker stays with the team with Ceccon making his return to the series after spending a season in Ocean’s GP3 team

Carlin: António Félix da Costa & Carlos Sainz Jr.
Max Chilton has been linked to a Marussia race seat next year and with Harayanto moving to Rapax, Carlin need to find 2 drivers. Félix da Costa has been mega all year in GP3 & WSR and is well prepared to race in GP2. Sainz Jr. has been impressive in British F3 and brings big Red Bull backing with him too. Choosing Sainz Jr. may be a huge gamble but there is no doubt he is talented and could do well in the series

It’s only a guess!

@prisoner-monkeys I heard during a GP2 race on TV.