However, seeing him replaced by Karun Chandhok at the last German Grand Prix so that the Indian driver could gain more race experience appeared to be a clear sign that the team management no longer necessarily relied on him as a permanent driver in the long term.<\/p>\n
This impression had been all the more accentuated by the fact that the team was slow to officially announce the renewal of the Italian’s contract for the next season, a sign that there might be some doubts in this regard.<\/p>\n
However, the Italian veteran declares he is completely confident for the next season, as he informed Manipe F1. \u00abWe are set for next year. This story came out at a particular time, but we have been in discussions for much longer. It was settled and it is still settled. Therefore, we are not engaged in discussions currently since everything is set for 2012.\u00bb As for the reason why the team is not making official statements, the Italian says he is not concerned: \u00abI have a contract. Whether the team decides to announce it or not, it’s not my problem.\u00bb<\/p>\n
Generally, when a driver feels compelled to make a statement in the press to assure that they have a contract for the future, it rarely bodes well for them. Indeed, we remember Kimi R\u00e4ikk\u00f6nen who kept insisting in 2009 that he had a contract for 2010. That didn’t stop Luca di Montezemolo from breaking said contract (with a hefty financial compensation) to bring Fernando Alonso to Maranello. We can also recall S\u00e9bastien Bourdais’ heartfelt claim on TF1 during the same season, asserting that he was assured to stay with Toro Rosso until the end of the season. During the following race weekend, it was Jaime Alguersuari who was behind the wheel of the STR4.<\/p>\n
We will see if the situation repeats itself for Jarno Trulli as Karun Chandhok is pushing hard (meaning presenting strong financial arguments) to make his full-time return to competition, while Heikki Kovalainen seems assured of his place due to the results achieved on track (like his lap in Q1 during the last Belgian Grand Prix…).<\/p>\n