2016 F1 grid shaping up as silly season nears end

  • Published on 04 Sep 2015 13:49
  • comments 0
  • By: Rob Veenstra

As the 'silly season' nears its end, the 2016 grid is now shaping up. With Kimi Raikkonen all signed up again, Ferrari will field an unchanged lineup next year, as will Mercedes, Sauber and probably the two Red Bull teams.

Fernando Alonso is contractually locked in at McLaren-Honda, and sources report that the Honda-powered team also wants to keep Jenson Button, but perhaps only if he lowers his retainer. When asked at Monza about the threat posed by McLaren juniors Kevin Magnussen and Stoffel Vandoorne, Button shut down the discussion immediately, insisting "I have nothing to say."

Earlier, Valtteri Bottas had appeared a shoo-in for a Ferrari seat, but Williams ultimately refused to sell his 2016 deal to the Maranello team. "I don't think you can put a price on someone like Valtteri," said Claire Williams on Thursday, after the Grove team also announced that Felipe Massa is staying.

Bottas, however, may become available again for 2017. "It's maybe one year or two. Or five or ten," he laughed to the Finnish broadcaster MTV, when asked to name the duration of his latest tenure at Williams. "It will become clear at some point," the Finn smiled again.

Mika Salo, a former F1 driver, surmised that when the Ferrari door closed, Bottas essentially had nowhere else to go. Lotus, for example, could become the Renault works team for 2016, but it appears Romain Grosjean is keeping his seat there, while Pastor Maldonado has a firm contract.

If it is deemed that Maldonado's PDVSA millions do not mesh with the presumably Total-sponsored Renault, he may be in the running to switch to Force India. The Silverstone based team has already locked down Nico Hulkenberg for the next two years, even though he had been linked with the new Ferrari-linked Haas team.

"Why should he have taken the risk with a new team if he already sits in a good car?" former driver Marc Surer, now a pundit for German television Sky, said on Thursday. "Force India has made progress and should be good here at Monza, so I think Hulkenberg has made a good decision," he added.

The other seat at Force India, however, remains unconfirmed, even though Sergio Perez's Mexican backers reportedly take EUR 20 million to the team per year. Maldonado's backing, on the other hand, is estimated at $50 million a year. But Perez said at Monza that his Force India deal could be all wrapped up by Singapore, telling reporters: "As you know, I have a group of sponsors and we're trying to make the announcement all together. So from that respect it's all clear."

Maldonado, therefore, is expecting to stay at Enstone, whether the cars are coloured black or yellow -- and even though it is rumoured Lotus' serious financial strife has been made even worse by PDVSA holding back a payment. "That's totally false," he said at Monza. "We (the driver and his sponsors) have a contract until the end of next season so it should be ok whether Renault comes or not," Maldonado added. (GMM)

Replies (0)

Login to reply

BE Grand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

BEGrand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

World Championship standings 2024

Show full world champion standings

Test calendar

See full test schedule

Related news

Give your opinion!

Will Bottas challenge Hamilton for the world championship in 2020?

Formula 1 Calendar - 2024

Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Bahrain
29 - Mar 2 2024
Bahrain
7 - Mar 9 2024
Saudi Arabia
22 - Mar 24 2024
Australia
5 - Apr 7 2024
Japan
19 - Apr 21 2024
China
3 - May 5 2024
United States of America
17 - May 19 2024
Italy
24 - May 26 2024
Monaco
7 - Jun 9 2024
Canada
21 - Jun 23 2024
Spain
28 - Jun 30 2024
Austria
5 - Jul 7 2024
United Kingdom
19 - Jul 21 2024
Hungary
26 - Jul 28 2024
Belgium
23 - Aug 25 2024
Netherlands
30 - Sep 1 2024
Italy
13 - Sep 15 2024
Azerbaijan
20 - Sep 22 2024
Singapore
18 - Oct 20 2024
United States of America
25 - Oct 27 2024
Mexico
1 - Nov 3 2024
Brazil
22 - Nov 24 2024
United States of America
29 - Dec 1 2024
Qatar
6 - Dec 8 2024
United Arab Emirates
-
United Arab Emirates
See full schedule

Formula 1 Calendar - 2024

Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
29 - Mar 2 2024
7 - Mar 9 2024
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
22 - Mar 24 2024
Australia Albert Park
5 - Apr 7 2024
19 - Apr 21 2024
3 - May 5 2024
United States of America Miami International Autodrome
17 - May 19 2024
24 - May 26 2024
Monaco Monte Carlo
7 - Jun 9 2024
21 - Jun 23 2024
28 - Jun 30 2024
Austria Red Bull Ring
5 - Jul 7 2024
United Kingdom Silverstone
19 - Jul 21 2024
Hungary Hungaroring
26 - Jul 28 2024
23 - Aug 25 2024
Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
30 - Sep 1 2024
Italy Monza
13 - Sep 15 2024
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
20 - Sep 22 2024
18 - Oct 20 2024
United States of America Circuit of the Americas
25 - Oct 27 2024
1 - Nov 3 2024
Brazil Interlagos
22 - Nov 24 2024
United States of America Las Vegas Street Circuit
29 - Dec 1 2024
6 - Dec 8 2024
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
-
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule

Driver profile

  • Team Aston Martin
  • Points 572
  • Podiums 9
  • Grand Prix 168
  • Country ES
  • Date of b. Jul 29 1981 (43)
  • Place of b. Oviedo, ES
  • Weight 68 kg
  • Length 1.71 m
Show full profile

Team profile

Show full profile
show sidebar