F1 NEWS FROM AROUND THE TRAPS

Barrichello's seat also not secure at Williams

 

The latest rumour in Formula One is that Rubens Barrichello's longest-ever Grand Prix career could be set to end after the 2010 finale next month.

German rookie Nico Hulkenberg admitted in Korea that he was concerned about speculation linking the new GP2 champion Pastor Maldonado with his Williams race seat. 

But a report in Auto Motor und Sport reveals that the Oxfordshire based team actually does not intend to confirm either Hulkenberg or his current teammate, the Brazilian veteran Barrichello, until the winter period.

 

 

The reason for the delay is Williams' sponsor situation, with RBS departing at the end of the year. It has also been reported that Philips, AirAsia and McGregor could also leave the Grove-based team.

Maldonado carries a reported US $15 million in the sponsorship of state-owned petroleum company PDVSA, and the latest rumour is that Williams has not yet decided whether Hulkenberg or Barrichello is the most likely to potentially make room for the 25-year-old.

The rumour about 39-year-old Barrichello was triggered when Patrick Head, Williams' engineering boss and the team's second biggest shareholder, said Hulkenberg had done enough in 2010 to justify his seat.

"I think Nico has done enough, both before he entered F1 and since being in F1, to support the view that he is a justified driver," said the Briton.

Rubens Barrichello has revealed he hopes to stay with the Williams team in 2011.

His comments, in a Portuguese interview with the news agency Reuters, follow reports that the veteran Brazilian could be replaced next year by the Venezuelan pay-driver Pastor Maldonado.

Previously, it was believed that Barrichello's rookie German teammate Nico Hulkenberg was the most likely to make way should the Oxfordshire based team decide to sign 25-year-old Maldonado and his sponsor.

"I've done a good job this year and I'm focused on the car for next year, so I'm hoping to stay," the Portuguese language report quoted Barrichello, 39, as saying.

Last month, the Brazilian said he was "100 per cent" sure he will be driving for Williams in 2011 even though the deal had not been confirmed on paper.

But when asked on Thursday if a deal is in place, Barrichello said: "That's something you will have to ask Williams."

And when discussing taking part in his 18th home Grand Prix next weekend, he added: "Our car is getting better and all I can hope for is a positive weekend.

"The start of the season was not so good, we thought we had a good car but it was hard for us to be in the top ten.

"But the rapport with the team was very good and we managed to improve," said Barrichello.

Globo also quotes him as saying: "I've been working on the car for next year. There are things arising from the regulations that we are only going to find out later, but the design is bold and 2011 is going to be better than this one."

 

D'Ambrosio close to 2011 Virgin race deal

 

Jerome d'Ambrosio is close to securing his Formula One race debut for 2011. That is the claim of Eric Boullier, who is in charge not only of the Renault team, but also Genii Capital's driver management arm Gravity.

Gravity negotiated Belgian d'Ambrosio's current Friday role with Virgin, and he is also set to race alongside Timo Glock next year, depending on his management's ability to compile the necessary budget.

"We have 95 per cent of the package together," Frenchman Boullier told the Het Nieuwsblad newspaper.

"For the remaining 5 per cent," he added, "it's just a matter of days. I would be pleased to have a signed contract in his pocket by the last race in Abu Dhabi."

 

Sutil rules out replacing Schumacher at Mercedes

Adrian Sutil has denied rumours he could be set to replace Michael Schumacher at Mercedes next year.

It has been suggested the 27-year-old German, who is currently contemplating his future at Force India, is first in line for the Mercedes race seat should Schumacher decide over the winter break to return to retirement.

"No, there is no truth in that," he told the Daily Mail in an interview.

"Michael is going to stay there for another year at least, and I think he has a three year contract, so that is how it is.

"Of course it would be great to drive for Mercedes in the future, but I think now is just too early, and they are just rumours," added Sutil.

He said he is expecting his own decision about the 2011 season to be made soon.

"I'm not sure at the moment, but it should happen pretty soon," said Sutil, who has also been linked with moves to Renault and Williams.

"I just want to make sure to do the right thing, but I can't say where I am going to be. It is too early for that.

"I was planning to make a decision four weeks ago, but it is difficult. Everyone is waiting, so I will try to make it as quick as possible."

 

Senna in talks for Lotus-Renault switch

Bruno Senna, the nephew of the great Ayrton Senna, is in talks to switch for 2011 from struggling HRT to F1's best new team Lotus.

That is the claim of Brazil's Globo Esporte, noting that the move would reinvoke the fabled Lotus/Renault/Senna combination of the 1980s.

Rookie Senna, who turned 27 earlier this month, has had a difficult debut season in 2010 at the wheel of the slowest and least developed car on the grid fielded by the Spanish newcomer Hispania.

"Bruno Senna is close to getting something better," said the Portuguese language report.

"He is in talks with Lotus and these talks are already well advanced," Globo added, nominating Jarno Trulli as the driver most likely to leave the Malaysian team in the event that Senna is signed.

The report cited sources "close to the driver" as insisting that Senna cannot finalise the deal until his sponsors agree, adding that these talks with "several companies" are also already taking place.

Globo Esporte also said Lotus' announcement of its Renault engine deal for 2011 will be made next weekend at Interlagos.

 

Amid Lotus seat uncertainty, Trulli travels to US

As drivers seemingly line up for his seat at Lotus, Jarno Trulli has been spotted in the US.

In recent days, rival drivers including Bruno Senna and Vitaly Petrov have been linked for 2011 with the Malaysian team, who are thought certain to renew Heikki Kovalainen's contract.

At the same time it has emerged that, immediately after the Korean Grand Prix, 36-year-old Italian veteran Trulli travelled to Miami.

He reportedly met up with his old friend Juan Pablo Montoya, and they dined on Thursday night at the Italian restaurant Il Gabbiano.

Last year, when his future beyond the withdrawing Toyota team was uncertain, Trulli also visited America, testing a NASCAR and visiting the Sprint Cup race in Phoenix.

Referring to the late 2009 test with Michael Waltrip Racing, he said his performance had been "very strong" and "on the pace of the best ones".