Kovalainen will not be replaced at Team Lotus
While his teammate might give up his seat three times to Karun Chandhok in exchange for an extension of his contract, Heikki Kovalainen does not intend to hand over his T128 to anyone.
For the first time since the 2004 Chinese Grand Prix and his eviction from Renault, Jarno Trulli will not take part in a Grand Prix, as following the announcement of his replacement by Karun Chandhok, which the Italian seemed to take rather well, Tony Fernandes confirmed the progress of negotiations for an extension of the Italian’s contract with Team Lotus for 2012.
From then on, it is difficult for observers not to see a cause-and-effect relationship, and Autosprint assures that the former Toyota driver should give up his seat two more times this season, notably during the Indian Grand Prix, in exchange for a guarantee of being a full-time driver next season.
However, Karun Chandhok claims that nothing has been decided yet regarding the Indian Grand Prix: « You will need to ask Tony Fernandes the question. I will be there decisively but I do not know yet in what role it will be. »
For his part, Heikki Kovalainen assures the Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat that he will not give up his seat under any circumstances: « It is not an option. There is no such agreement and I would not accept my car being entrusted to someone else. »
However, the 29-year-old driver has already been able, on several occasions, to give up his spot on Friday mornings to allow the team’s reserve drivers to gain experience – and justify the investment of their respective sponsors: « I accepted it even though I didn’t really like it. If next year we are fighting for points, then I think we should do the whole season but for now, if we miss a practice session, it’s not too serious. »
