An update on transfers for 2009

A month has already passed since the last race of the 2008 season and many teams have already confirmed their driver lineup for the next season, a season already marked as revolutionary in technical terms, but not in terms of drivers.

See the Transfers 2008/2009 page

Indeed, at this stage of the off-season, eight out of ten teams have already revealed their drivers for 2009. This is the case for McLaren, Ferrari, BMW, Renault, Toyota, Williams, Red Bull, and Force India.

All the teams mentioned above have renewed their drivers’ contracts from 2008 and are choosing a conservative strategy to offset the numerous changes in regulations.

We must add to these the case of Honda. The Japanese team has indeed renewed Jenson Button’s contract for the next season, but this is not the case for the second driver, Rubens Barrichello. The Brazilian is getting older in the F1 world, and his weight with the arrival of KERS is not to be taken lightly. He is therefore in competition with other drivers, all Brazilian.

Honda recently tested GP2 young drivers Lucas di Grassi and Bruno Senna in Barcelona. According to rumors, Ayrton Senna’s nephew might have a slight advantage.

On the Toro Rosso side, the situation is even more unclear… Sebastian Vettel has left for Red Bull and Sébastien Bourdais has not been renewed. Two spots are therefore available for 2009.

The Italian team tested three drivers in Barcelona on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday: Bourdais, Sato, and Buemi (a young GP2 driver).

All have shown strong performances, but according to Bourdais, it’s money that will influence the Toro Rosso management decisions, not performances. This is Bourdais’s weak point; a critical lack of sponsors.

Added to this are new competitors. According to the Frenchman, any driver with enough money, or rather, bringing enough sponsors, would be a potential candidate for 2009. Bourdais then considers five candidates for two spots at Toro Rosso.

« Toro Rosso tested three drivers in Barcelona, but Barrichello and Senna are also to be considered. You just need to have money… » Comments the Manceau on the official Formula 1 website.

Finally, it’s worth noting that Toro Rosso doesn’t intend to quickly reveal its lineup… the wait will be very long for the French camp, considered as favorites…

See the Transfers 2008/2009 page