Andrea Caldarelli has counted himself out of the running to race for Caterham in the near future. As the cockpit reshuffling continues in the wake of Kamui Kobayashi's missed race at Spa, it is known that the team's new leadership wants Roberto Merhi to drive the car under Singapore's lights this weekend.
But although the Spaniard drove on Friday morning at Monza recently, he still did not collect enough kilometres to automatically qualify for his F1 super license. We reported last week that Japanese Kobayashi could return to the wheel of his car yet again in Singapore.
But other reports in Japan suggested a driver called Andrea Caldarelli could be another candidate, especially for the subsequent race at Suzuka. The 24-year-old Italian was in the news recently when he was called up to race in the premier Japanese open-wheel series Super Formula when Andre Lotterer got his Caterham opportunity at Spa.
It is rumoured Caldarelli, who has tested F1 cars for Toyota and Ferrari, has the backing of Caterham's newly installed boss Manfredi Ravetto, and strong ties within Japan. But he has now ruled out a Suzuka debut, insisting it clashes with his duties in the Japanese Super GT series. "I can categorically exclude it," Caldarelli is quoted by Speed Week, "because on the same weekend is the GT race in Thailand and this is an absolute priority for me."
Indeed, driving a TOM's Lexus, Caldarelli is running second in that high-profile Japanese series, and Thailand is the penultimate round. Caldarelli continued: "It is clear that formula one is a dream for me, and given my experience with Ferrari and Toyota I would not rule out being back in a car one day. But for the moment, for sure not," he added.
Meanwhile, ahead of Singapore, the well-sponsored Caterham regular Marcus Ericsson insists he can give no insight into the identity of his forthcoming teammates. "To be honest, when you're in the car and preparing for race weekends you're so focused on that you don't really think about it," he told Reuters.
"It's not been something that has influenced me but obviously now we have the new owners that have come in and they've been pushing really hard to continue developing the car, so that's been very positive," Ericsson added. (GMM)
Caldarelli 'excludes' himself as candidate for Caterham seat
- Published on 16 Sep 2014 11:32
-
0
- By: Rob Veenstra
.
Trending news
-
Nike reportedly working on F1 return after two decadesNike is exploring a return to Formula 1 after more than two decades away from the paddock, with early-stage talks cen...
01 Sep 2026 16:25 -
How Liam Lawson's Zandvoort drive may have rescued his F1 futureLiam Lawson may have salvaged his Formula 1 career with a composed performance at the Dutch Grand Prix, according to ...
01 Sep 2026 15:23 -
Sainz baffled by Verstappen's thoughts on early F1 retirementCarlos Sainz has expressed genuine confusion at Max Verstappen's repeated consideration of early retirement from ...
01 Sep 2026 14:21 -
Why Lando Norris' New McLaren Role Could Pressure PiastriLando Norris has signalled his intention to become McLaren's undisputed leader, citing growing influence over tea...
01 Sep 2026 13:20 -
Betting on the F1 season: reading the odds and building a race-day strategyFollowing an entire Formula 1 season means constantly reassessing the competitive order. A car that excels through Mo...
01 Sep 2026 14:23
Dutch Grand Prix
Local time
-
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Dutch Grand Prix
Local time
-
Friday
-
Saturday
-
Sunday
-
Friday
-
Saturday
-
Sunday
Test calendar
Circuit de Catalunya - Winter testing
-
Jan 26
I. Hadjar
- 1:18.159
-
-
-
Jan 27
M. Verstappen
- 1:19.578
-
-
-
Jan 28
A. Antonelli
- 1:17.362
-
-
-
Jan 29
G. Russell
- 1:16.445
-
-
-
Jan 30
L. Hamilton
- 1:16.348
-
-
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
-
Feb 11
L. Norris
- 1:34.669
-
-
-
Feb 12
C. Leclerc
- 1:34.273
-
-
-
Feb 13
A. Antonelli
- 1:33.669
-
-
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
-
Feb 18
G. Russell
- 1:33.459
-
-
Feb 19
A. Antonelli
- 1:32.803
-
-
Feb 20
C. Leclerc
- 1:31.992
-
-
World Championship standings 2026
Pos
Driver
Team
Points
Pos
Team
Points
Related news
Give your opinion!
Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Spain
-
Bahrain
-
Bahrain
Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
-
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
-
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
-
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
6 - Mar 8
Australia
Albert Park
13 - Mar 15
27 - Mar 29
Japan
Circuit Suzuka
10 - Apr 12
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
17 - Apr 19
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street Circuit
1 - May 3
United States of America
Miami International Autodrome
22 - May 24
Canada
Gilles Villeneuve
5 - Jun 7
Monaco
Monte Carlo
12 - Jun 14
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
26 - Jun 28
Austria
Red Bull Ring
3 - Jul 5
United Kingdom
Silverstone
17 - Jul 19
Belgium
Spa-Francorchamps
24 - Jul 26
Hungary
Hungaroring
21 - Aug 23
Netherlands
Circuit Zandvoort
4 - Sep 6
Italy
Monza
11 - Sep 13
Spain
Madring
Driver profile
- Team Sauber
- Points 18
- Podiums 0
- Grand Prix 81
- Country SE
- Date of b. Sep 2 1990 (36)
- Place of b. Kumla, SE
- Weight 63 kg
- Length 1.8 m
- 34,204 comments on Sauber
3 members have this team as their favourite
Tweets about Marcus Ericsson
Team profile
- Team name TOM's
- Base Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan
- Marcus Ericsson 8
- 88 comments on TOM's
- 0 members have this team as their favourite
- Tweets about TOM's
Replies (0)
Login to reply