Rumours abound amid Spa-Monza dash Mon 08 Sep, 06:10 PM - F1Live.com As the Formula One world this week dashes across Europe between the Spa-Francorchamps/Monza double header, rumours abound about possible driver changes for the future. Despite Sebastien Bourdais enjoying a strong weekend in the Ardennes, the Belgian paddock on Sunday night buzzed with speculation the Frenchman's days at Toro Rosso may be extremely numbered. Indeed, some sages whispered that Sunday's Italian Grand Prix could be his last, as the Ferrari-powered squad possibly turns to giving 2009 contenders Takuma Sato, Sebastien Buemi and Bruno Senna the opportunity to prove their worth at the remaining races of this season. There is also movement behind the scenes at Renault, where the future of the Brazilian rookie Nelson Piquet looks in doubt. Indeed, it is reported by Switzerland's Motorsport Aktuell on Monday that another Brazilian - 24-year-old test driver Lucas di Grassi - is to test for the French team on all three days of the forthcoming Jerez test. The report said the test is an evaluation with possibly replacing his countryman for 2009 in mind, amid uncertainty that di Grassi's recent strong form in GP2 can cross over to the senior series. It was also rumoured at Spa-Francorchamps that Grand Prix veteran Nick Heidfeld, whose seat at BMW Sauber seems insecure for 2009, may be a contender to race with Renault next year.
Heidfeld stakes claim on 2009 seat Mon 08 Sep, 11:20 PM - F1Live.com Nick Heidfeld did his chances of retaining his BMW Sauber race seat for 2009 no harm with his performance at Spa-Francorchamps, team boss Mario Theissen admits. After a dismal outing at Valencia two weeks earlier, the 31-year-old German bounced back in style in Belgium. His performance was strong all weekend at the famous venue, but the inspired decision to switch to wet tyres two laps from the end gave him the grip to drive around his rivals and race to the podium. Rumours abound that BMW is considering giving Robert Kubica, who is understood to have signed a new one-year contract, a new teammate for 2009. But with the regulations set to drastically change, Theissen agrees that is a strong reason to retain as much stability as possible in other areas. Moreover, Fernando Alonso aside, it is not clear from where on the current driver market the Hinwil-based team might source an obviously better alternative for 2009. Theissen told reporters in Belgium that he has delayed the decision about finalising the team's next lineup. He also hailed Heidfeld's race, particularly the decision to switch to wets. "It tells you something about racecraft and about racing experience to judge a situation like this within a few seconds," Theissen said. Referring to the possibility of retaining Heidfeld, meanwhile, the German added: "We won't have technical stability next year and stability is something positive."
I predict, in an egregious case of sport-wide collusion, all drivers in next year's championship will be named Sebastian.
