Well Chaps, now that it's official that the Silver Arrows will be running again under the three pointed star, the only real question is whether or not they'll be willing to buy K. Raikkonen to fill the other seat!
If so, then we could see a brilliant battle between young Rosberg, who's so far not ever been in a competitive seat, and the brilliant, but uneven, Finn.
As to the other Finn, the one whose I never learned how to spell and whose seat the Jense just took -- well, maybe Campos will have a seat for him? or the BMW/Sauber/Camel Driver group?
If, that is, the Ecclestone decides to 'allow' the long-suffering Swiss campaigner a 'slot' next year. And isn't THAT fantastic! The team that earned 6th place in the manufacturer's points AND who is rumored to have the best power plant on the grid, isn't even guaranteed a slot next year!!
Personally, I am very disappointed that Mercedes-B[raun]enz, didn't snatch up Timo Glock to confront the All-Brit McLaren line-up with an (almost) All-Teuton Merc one!
But, leaving the second Merc seat open for the moment, let's run down the 2010 grid as of this moment:
Red Bull/Renault (and here's hoping Renault, if they pull out, will still supply Adrian Newey's slick chassis with a decent engine!) is the only team for next year with continuity: they were Second in Manufacturer's points and Second (Vettel) and Fourth (Webber) in Driver's points. Here's hoping next year they startle us all by moving their numbers from 3 & 4 to 1 & 2!
McLaren/Mercedes were third in manufacturer's points and their drivers for next year will be [1] Button and [5] Hamilton. Should be fun to watch because the Jense will be playing the Barrichello to Hamilton's Schumacher.
Ferrari, alas, is on a downward slope I fear.
The great discipline and brilliant results they managed under Meister Braun and Maestro Todt with the RingMeister Schu are a thing of the past.
Alonso only managed ninth in points last year and Massa scored eleventh & would probably been a couple higher but for bad luck, but unless a miracle has been managed at Maranello --and I doubt it has-- the famous red machines could go for a record number of races without a podium.
It will be fun, though, to hear from the Spaniard about the car's performance!
Williams, alas, will be Cosworth powered. Couldn't Sir Frank have at least TRIED for some Renault blocks? Or even BMW?!!
Ed says (rightly) that Cosworth has a great F1 heritage. But heritage don't win you races, that takes grunt (power plus reliability) and a good chassis with a good to great driver. Presumably Sir Frank will supply a decent chassis, but Rubens and the Hulk don't look very promising (points wise) to me.
Renault has a great driver in Robert Kubica--
--and maybe V. Petrov can bring enough cash with him to keep the French machinery before the public.
Granted that I hate Renault (for no good reason, I admit
) I will be very sad to see them leave.
And VERY upset if they pull out and wreck Red Bull's chances!
Now I can't say that about Toyota, the "world's largest car builder". They never should have been in F1 since they evidently were more committed to sales than racing. I say good riddance.
But alas, they left two solid drivers high and dry.
Timo Glock, they say, has gone to Manor/Cosworth. So I really doubt he'll be in the top ten drivers in points next year! And Jarno? Is it true he's signed with Lotus?
And that brings us to Force India , the third team on the grid with Illmore (oops, I mean, Mercedes) power.
They'll probably keep Adrian Sutil --and maybe even partner him with Nick Heidfeld? Suddenly we find Teutons everywhere!
Or maybe the Indian chap that Bernie E. has been championing
will buy his way in?
Torro Rosso/Ferrari should move up next year: The other Sebastien, Buemi has been solid
and if they're smart they'll snatch up K. Kobayashi for the second seat!
Wouldn't it be fun if they did a 'Braun' on Ferrari and out pointed the factory team?!
Now we enter the eight machines who will play the moving
chicane role:
USF1/Cosworth: don't be surprised if yet another Sebastian --this time the Frenchman, Bourdais-- doesn't take one of their seats. He is, after all, better known in the U.S. than most of the rest of the F1 field!
And maybe this is where Heikki, the solid, but uninspiring Finn,
will find a seat?
Or, if Peter Windsor is really lucky, he might land quick Nick Heidfeld, who would be his best chance to steal some points for his first year.
Lotus/Cosworth: they're saying Jarno Trulli and Kaz Nakajima (unless they can locate some Eurasian talent so far unknown to the larger world)
Campos/Cosworth: Bruno Senna has been signed supposedly; it would make sense for them to snatch up J. Alguersuari I think. But by the time
you get down to this point, you have to wonder whether some of these teams will even QUALIFY for races!
And, finally, Manor/Cosworth: Timo Glock they say has signed. If so, they're getting a real bargain. Will they partner him with di Grassi? Probably. But actually: who, other than the drivers involved, really cares?
Because about all I am looking forward to with respect to "the Cosworth runners" is whether or not they'll have decent livery. Let's just hope none of them hires the idiots who came up with the Jaguar paint jobs for Ford!
Well, that's it for a --way, too-- lengthy gaze at my grease smeared Crystal Ball.
I hope that 2010 is, in fact, what Ross Braun has been saying lately: a return to the good old days of the privateers and grease monkey's rubbing the manufacturer's faces in their dust as they snatch the glory. It will be especially rich if the Ross, in selling out to the fat cats at Merc, is on the losing end next year!
So here's to young Vettel and Webber and Rosberg and who ever partner's him to leaving the Silver Mercs and the Red cars fighting for nothing more than the third step on the podium!
Merry Christmas, all --and may Max and Bernie get lumps --no MOUNTAINS!-- of coal in their stockings!
Jim Watt
--and maybe V. Petrov can bring enough cash with him to keep the French machinery before the public.