Hulkenberg - 2010 race seat

[axle]

http://www.planet-f1.com/story/0,18954, ... 28,00.html

So what's the betting Rosberg leaves and Williams promote Hulkenberg?

I can't see Williams being losers in this deal, Rosberg is good but not irreplaceable...

[waynes]

i'd rather see Hulkenberg + Rosberg together to be fair

[axle]

i'd rather see Hulkenberg + Rosberg together to be fair

Well of course, but to do that Williams will have be in the top 8 consistantly, top 6 preferably...even winning the odd race.

Kazuki's money might also be a major factor!

Assuming Williams don't suddenly shoot bag up the charts, I see Rosberg at BMW for 2010.

[ISLAMATRON]

just occured to me... damn... what if Toyota pulls out of F1? might spell the end of williams too.... Toyota gives a hefty check to williams to run kazoo

[Sawtooth-spike]

BMW would be an option, I think they would push hard for him. But Renult are more than likely going to lose Alonso so that seat needs to be filled with some talent, so i guess they might put there 2 pence in. But for me i think Mclaren will have a pop, If Hecki doess not pick up his form this season then they will be looking for a good team mate for lewis, Rosberg and Lewis are good friends and have worked well together before. That would be a Dream team in my book

[ESPImperium]

Personally i see Rossberg at McLaren for 2010, as i think Hekki is second choice there since they couldnt buy out Nicos contract for last year and this year.

I see Hekki being left in the cold or doing an Alonso and going back to Renault to partner Alonso if Ferarri keep ahold or Kini and Massa, or go to replace most probably Massa with either Kubica or Vettel.

However, for 2010, i can see a sensational shake up of the driver line up, i can see it being a merry-go-round, with arround 3 new teams coming in. I can see "safe" drivers being punted for better, lower cost options. Such as Kimi or Massa at Ferarri, as they could get Kubica and Vettel for $20Million a year for the both of them, punting Kini and Massa saving them $26Million for talking sakes.

I dont think Toyota will pull out of F1, but i can see Williams using the Standard engine next year, with up to 3 new teams as well, as i can see Toyota cutting costs and pulling out of customer deals to save money and pull Kazuki as well as this could save the arround $15-20 a year.

I think that the speculation for 2010 has just started and the 2009 season has not started. Should be a good season of speculation.

[axle]

I dont think Toyota will pull out of F1, but i can see Williams using the Standard engine next year, with up to 3 new teams as well, as i can see Toyota cutting costs and pulling out of customer deals to save money and pull Kazuki as well as this could save the arround $15-20 a year.

Blimey they really are hard up if they need to save $20!!

[Roland Ehnström]

We might also see some radical changes to the pecking-order in 2009. Perhaps every top driver in the field will suddenly want to drive a Red Bull or a BMW...

Here are some wild guesses of mine:

- Heidfeld could well be dropped by BMW after 2009. He may choose to retire, but it's more likely that he finds a ride in one of the new "privateer" teams for 2010. Kubica will stay at BMW, partnered by Alonso or Rosberg.

- Raikkönen retires after the 2009 season. Massa will stay at Ferrari, and will be partnered by Vettel or Alonso.

- Kovalainen may stay at McLaren if he ups his game in 2009, but if not he could be dropped in favor of Rosberg. My bet is that he stays, I still have faith in Heikki. Hamilton will definately stay.

- Webber may be dropped by Red Bull after being outclassed by Vettel in 2009. And if the RB5 is as fast as it looks, Vettel might well stay for another season. Bourdais could be promoted from Toro Rosso after a strong 2009 season. The Toro Rosso lineup for 2010 could be Senna and Buemi.

- Piquet is likely to be dropped by Renault, and Alonso may leave after another bad season. Romain Grosjean will probably race in 2010, and Renault could pick up Kovalainen if he is dropped by McLaren. Lucas di Grassi is another option, but they will probably not want to run two F1-rookies.

- Kamui Kobayashi could race a Toyota in 2010, probably alongside Glock. Like Heidfeld, experienced Trulli may find a seat in one of F1's new teams, or possibly Force India.

- Hulkenberg will probably replace Rosberg at Williams. The second seat could go to either Kobayashi or Nakajima, given that Williams keep the Toyota engines.

- Force India will keep Sutil (if they can hang on to him) while Fisichella may finally retire. Chandok is an outside bet for the second race seat.

- I also predict that Portuguese A1GP driver Filipe Albuquerque may find himself in F1 already in 2010. Earl Bamber (NZ) and Felipe Guimarães (Brazil) are two other youngsters to keep an eye on from A1GP, but they will probably not be in F1 in another couple of years.

It will be interesting to go back to this thread in a years time to see how much, if anything, I got right.

[mx_tifoso]

Rosberg says that he wants to be with a top team by 2010, whether it is with Williams or not. So if the FW31 is a dog this season, he will most likely go to another team.

I can definately seem him at McLaren.

[ISLAMATRON]

or possibly BMW

[Afterburner]

- I also predict that Portuguese A1GP driver Filipe Albuquerque may find himself in F1 already in 2010. Earl Bamber (NZ) and Felipe Guimarães (Brazil) are two other youngsters to keep an eye on from A1GP, but they will probably not be in F1 in another couple of years.

Filipe Albuquerque it's a great driver but it's not the best portuguese driver prepared for F1, the best one is Álvaro Parente, he won the World Series by Renault two years ago, because of that he grabbed a test with Renault F1, the test was very good and he stayed on Briatore's agenda, this year he raced on GP2 (supernova) but it's being hard for him to find a competitive car for next year because he doesn't have half the support that Filipe has, if he had the same financial support that Filipe and Tiago Monteiro have he'd be on F1 next year.

[mx_tifoso]

Why do people keep on saying that Raikkonen will retire before his contract ends?

He will be here for at least two more seasons ('09+'10).

[dumrick]

- I also predict that Portuguese A1GP driver Filipe Albuquerque may find himself in F1 already in 2010. Earl Bamber (NZ) and Felipe Guimarães (Brazil) are two other youngsters to keep an eye on from A1GP, but they will probably not be in F1 in another couple of years.

Filipe Albuquerque it's a great driver but it's not the best portuguese driver prepared for F1, the best one is Álvaro Parente, he won the World Series by Renault two years ago, because of that he grabbed a test with Renault F1, the test was very good and he stayed on Briatore's agenda, this year he raced on GP2 (supernova) but it's being hard for him to find a competitive car for next year because he doesn't have half the support that Filipe has, if he had the same financial support that Filipe and Tiago Monteiro have he'd be on F1 next year.

I think that now it is a misconception saying that Albuquerque has that kind of support. It was true 2 seasons ago, while he was under the Red Bull program, but he came out of it when Red Bull tried to send him racing to Japan (IIRC).
Also, highly as I regard Parente, I'm more impressed by the kind of race driver Albuquerque is: a very fast one, but that hardly commits a fault. I even think he may be wasted talent at single-seaters, he could be the new endurance star, a new McNish, Lamy or Kristensen.

[Roland Ehnström]

Yes, Parente is another very good Portuguese driver. When he started the 2008 GP2 season with a dominant win, I thought he would definatelty make it to F1, but then he sadly faded away during the season. He needs a VERY strong 2009 season to get back on track for that F1 seat.

About Räikkönen, the reason I think he will choose to retire after 2009 is that he himself hinted at that in interviews early last season. He said something like "I don't want to be in F1 all my life - at the end of the 2009 season I will turn 30 years old, perhaps it is then time to move on". Maybe this was before he signed the contract for 2010, I really don't know. He also seemed to lack commitment in 2008 - he just doesn't seem to enjoy F1 as much as he used to.

[axle]

Yes, Parente is another very good Portuguese driver. When he started the 2008 GP2 season with a dominant win, I thought he would definatelty make it to F1, but then he sadly faded away during the season. He needs a VERY strong 2009 season to get back on track for that F1 seat.

About Räikkönen, the reason I think he will choose to retire after 2009 is that he himself hinted at that in interviews early last season. He said something like "I don't want to be in F1 all my life - at the end of the 2009 season I will turn 30 years old, perhaps it is then time to move on". Maybe this was before he signed the contract for 2010, I really don't know. He also seemed to lack commitment in 2008 - he just doesn't seem to enjoy F1 as much as he used to.

And to add to that, he seems to be enjoying other forms of motorsport like rallying. I think his tasters this year are going to lead to him grabbing a top drive in a WRC car...he's trying to prove he can do it via the S2000 class.