Like we speculated a few weeks ago, Fernando Alonso’s move to Ferrari in 2010 has well and truly kicked off the silly season, with Robert Kubica now being confirmed to replace the Spaniard at Renault.
The French outfit admitted to having kept an eye on Kubica since his grand prix debut in 2006, and regard him as one of the most talented drivers of his generation.
Kubica was in need of a seat after his current team, BMW, said that they were pulling out of F1 at the end of this season. And even though BMW has since found a buyer, the uncompetitive nature of this year’s car no doubt spurred the Pole on to wanting a drive elsewhere.
So that’s two predictions ticked off the list – will Kimi Raikkonen to McLaren be next?
Hmm… I wasn’t expecting this if i’m honest… However I would NOT like to see Raikkonen at Mclaren again.
Deano,
You’re the only one who didn’t. Ever since BMW announced they were pulling out, Kubica-to-Renault was about as clear as day. He came up the developmental ranks with Renault tested for them before Briatore foolishly let him get away to BMW, for which the Renault engineers were reportedly very unhappy.
It’s a great move for both sides. Kubica is moving to a team with proven success in F1 where he presumably will become the focal point. Renault get one of the most talented guys on the grid and an honest-to-god racer, which fits the mold they are crafting for the team in the post-Briatore era.
As for Raikkonen going back to McLaren, you might not like it, but it looks nearly certain to happen. Raikkonen wants to be with a championship contender, and McLaren wants him back to put up a legitimate challenge for the WCC with a superpairing of drivers. The only holdup right now looks to be money.
Yep, the third most expected move ticked, this has been rumoured since before the BMW pullout really. Hopefully we can see what Kubica can really do, I’ve had a few doubts on him to be honest, if Renault can put a good car together next season then Kubica could truly shine if he’s as good as they say.
Next up has to be Raikkonen to McLaren, almost confirmed by Whitmarsh really. After that, guess it’s going to be wherever Barrichello ends up.
So renault arent quitting. good.
i wouldnt like kimi to go to mclaren either. if he must leave ferrari, he should join wrc or something.
also i feel kind of sorry for fisi. i dont think he will like being test driver.
Kimi must be in McLaren! Otherwise No more F1 from that on!!
Well…kimi made it quite clear that if h stays, he’ll be staying to win. Despite the surprising year we’ve had in F1, everyone knows which of the teams are most likely to provide their drivers a shot at the title and Kimi will be leaving one of those teams at end of season. ’nuff said!
In 2008 he was a championship contender, kind of..
He surely can make a bit of cash with Renault, but that’s all there is to it. Mid-field material at most.
McLaren is the only F1 option for Raikkonen. He said quite plainly that if he doesn’t have a competitive car, he’ll leave F1. Thinklk about it, first of all, rule out the teams he wouldn’t consider competitive: Toyota, Williams, Toro Rosso, Force India, Campos Meta 1, Lotus F1 Team, Manor GP and Team US F1. Then the teams who have confirmed drivers for next season: Red Bull and Scuderia Ferrari. So that leaves Brawn GP, Mclaren, and Renault. I don’t believe Renault could afford both him and Kubica, so it’s between the other two. I couldn’t see him going to Brawn GP, so McLaren is clearly favourite
It’s a VERY long shot but it’d be very interesting (if very unlikely) if Raikkonen went to Brawn to join Rosberg and Button went to Mclaren to join Hamilton. I know, not going to happen really but i’d love to see those line-ups
!
That’s unfortunate, Reno cars look horrible. Good luck to him although I doubt he’ll be contending for the championship. As far as the silly season, I think Heidfeld would have a nice drive with Williams alongside Hulkenberg. Kimi will enjoy his last f1 years at mclaren before moving on to wrc after being overshadowed by Lewis. Rubens will go to a new team (why doesn’t he just retire already)and Nico will partner Jenson at Brawn.As for Kubica’s teammate, Piquet??
hehe
Kimi back at McLaren is a good thing.
No surprises here. Let’s see if Kubica can be a serious driver again or just a one season wonder.
If for some reason Raikkonen will not go to McLaren (money issues and/or Hamilton’s background group trying to block it), I think that Heikki will continue to be their number 2 driver for next season.
Risky move for Kubica.
Given the flak they’ve taken for Crashgate and the pulling out of their major sponsors I don’t think Renault will last long. (I hope I’m wrong but…)
I think Kubica is a good driver, he was leading the world chamionship last year for ****s sake! lol im not really fond of Kimi, its not his ability its the way he projects his personality and the fact him and Lewis dont really get along so well lol
I’m dying to see the look on Hamilton’s and his dads faces when McLaren confirm Kimi for the next season… The simple fact is that Kimi has been and still is underrated. And sure, when Kimi’s not driving he fools around quite a lot, but when he’s focusing on his driving and he’s got a proper, good and reliable car then bang, he is a force to be reckoned with. If/when Kimi joins McLaren, Lewis WILL be left in his shadow. And Ferrari’s going to take a beating for sacking him.
Well, he will obviously be the first Polish driver ever to drive a ketchup and mustard colored F1 car around a racetrack.
Trulli is going to NASCAR. . .
I think Brawn is as strong as McLaren may be Kimi will go to Brawn
Trulli is going to NASCAR. . . Seems like NASCAR is fond of F1 drivers
Well that isn’t so surprising, although I was thinking he would go to Toyota instead, which really still seems more competitive than the Renault to me.
Does anyone know who his team-mate is going to be?
Just read that Kimi might go to Red Bull with Mark Webber leaving.
How about Webber to Mclaren?
Said this in another thread, I feel that Kimi moving back to McL would be a bad idea for both as expectations have moved on. There is nothing more demotivating than feeling your life is going in circles.
Good move for Kubica. He gets a bit of a hard time (especially in the print cousin of this site!) but it would be sad to loose such a good driver
Webber to McL, Chris? Now there’s a scoop.
F1 is the stepping stone into NASCAR.
Carl Edwards > Michael Schumacher.
I love Ferrari, but i cannot credit them for sacking Kimi Raikkonen.. He took a car that has not been develeped by the team for several months now, and has been on the podiumin 5 out of the 7 races easily the driver that has scored the most points in recent races..
If he moves back to mclaren,he is really going to whip Alonso, Massa and lash Ferrari..
Mclaren have a dept to pay to him, they lost him 2 world championships because his engine blew in the vital races.. he could have been a triple world champion now..
NECKCAR — as if that’s actual racing
I agree that Ferrari will suffer for sacking kimi, but i wish kimi doesn’t move to mclaren, cos i am die hard fan of ferrari. If they given him a good car then I’m sure kimi would have done better than anyone around. I hope alonso will prove me wrong.
The only reason kimi would not move back is if hamilton & co get weepy at the thought of the iceman chilling in the next garage. kimi does his own thing and could not give a s*^t about anyone else. he is a great driver who as rex 437 mentioned lost 2 championships due to mclaens engines blowing and not to forget rear wings flying off all of a sudden. in 2003 he lost to the michael vy 2 points and a similar margin to crybaby alonso in 2005.
Woo, silly season! Kubica could be awesome at Renault if he gets the car right.
Wanna know my bet for next year? Brawn might not be too good. Think about it, this year’s car was paid for by Honda, and as the season’s progressed, it’s got relatively slower. If they don’t have a budget, they wont have a quick car, simple as. It’s gonna be tough for them to make another quick car to follow this one.
Kimi? Move to Mclaren? Isn’t that going to take his freedom away as a “I-don’t-care” driver?
Still, if the Kimi-Lewis combination works then this should be feared…
Besides, a team with two “superweapon” drivers is considered close to cheating (I don’t have any other word to describe this situation)! No two world champions in one team!
Ha…ha…ha…
Still, would be nice to see Kimi giving Lewis a proper education…
I said this before, but in another post.
NELSINHO is testing a NASCAR truck… he can’t miss the walls there.
Jarno, you can’t miss him, he’ll be the one with a big “L” in the back of the car, and in the front of the helmet…
The problem with Kimi back with McL is that he will be #2 by definition. Everything, from design, testing, setup, everything will be custom made for Hamilton.
I don’t know how different are his preferences, but if he likes understearing and Hamilton likes overstearing, then he’s lost.
I hope I’m wrong, and he kills them all!!!
who will be kubica’s teammate surley not groejoen(it’s spelt something like that)
what about heidfelf he does’t have a drive yet
sorry i ment heidfeld
Grosjean is not likely to be kubica’s team mate in Renault. It is speculated that Lucas di Grassi, test driver, will replace Grosjean as soon as Brazil GP (2009, of course).
BTW, it is also said that Kubica will earn 8,5 million euros a year, more than his current wages in BMW.
However, the thing is – if Renault will present a decent car, not that kind of shit given by BMW. Mario Thaisen has been talking about constant development of the team since 2006 at least. But what we have seen recently was just extreme deterioration.
my view on next year season
1 kimi goes to mclaren as a 2nd driver having showed hamilton after a few races wat real drivers are made of he will replace him as 1st driver
2 alonso is never last long in ferrari if he keeps up with the attitude he had in mclaren
3 brawn gp wont be a competition next year cause this years car was made,paid n tested by honda before 08 season was over thts why they ended with a good car
4 out of all the new teams comin only lotus look serious plus they have to mantain their hist in f1
If Brawn starts next 2010 season with a chasis that isn’t as spectacular was the opening of 09′ than that might be vindication that it was mostly Honda’s 09′ preseason R&D.
As things stand now it looks like the field is surpassing Brawn for next season as Ferrari/Mclaren has already started designs for 2010.
#36 what makes you think lotus looks more serious than the other new teams? They seem to be in the same position to me, and it won’t really be the same British lotus but rather a fake Malaysian one that has nothing to live up to.
Lotus is still the same old Lotus (inside) though even under Proton, unlike other British car brands that just dissapeared into mediocrity after being bought.
And Lotus Engineering is still one of the best car design/consultation firms around.
I would not rule them out…
MALAYSIA STRONG
Kimi back at McLaren seems to be the logical and less complicated choice, however, I wouldn’t put it past Red Bull to bin Webber if it meant getting Kimi, as his manager is doing the rounds even with teams who have seats already filled.
Still a damn shame how Ferrari “broomed” him like that.
Lotus will not be the same old Lotus, those days are long gone. Still doubt this Kubica/Renault thing bcs there are still indications they will quit..like Toyota. Don’t trust this new teams either and wonder if Williams will make it. Also McLaren might be in dire straits with this ongoing Mercedes rumours. Would only count on Ferrari and Red Bull for the moment. F1 2010 might be a very empty fielding.
No wonder with the current regulations (ugly cars) and way of rule keeping by the FIA.
@ #38
u can say the same abt jaguar n land rover,tht now they are owned by the indian wat makes u think they will be same as the old ones
what i meant about lotus is tht they are the only new team with TRUE F1 experience
if lotus would have become a cheap malaysian car then my frnd u wldnt be seeing the new evora plus if u read the ceo of lotus new interview u will hear him about reviving lotus n make it like the british owned lotus so they can compete against ferraris n lamborghinis
Kimi ar McLaren.
Good on Kubica!
I’m not really sure about Kimi’s apparent move to McLaren. I would much prefer it if Nico Rosberg climbed in the silver car. After all, he and Lewis have been friends since childhood! Plus, he ain’t a bad driver either.
Indeed, hope Mercedes will not let McLaren down!! Mr.Haug, don´t forget, McLaren is having a great heritage in F1 and Mercedes is lifting on this, don´t destroy it otherwise it might end just like Sauber. Stay with McLaren and continue what is one of the best cooperations, there is no team as sparkling and impressive in F1 as McLaren, anyone who has been at races and in the pits and paddock will agree!!
Nah…Sutil to take Heikki’s seat after Force India and Mclaren have that deal thing going on…and then Heikki to take a seat a one of the new teams…Lotus/Manor.
IF ALL NASCAR DRIVERS DROVE AN F1 CAR, THEY WOULD BE 14 SECONDS THAN NORMAL. NASCAR PRE RACE SHOWS ARE 2 TO 3 HOURS LONG. THA’S WHY I’M A F1, LE MANS, WRC, AND DTM FAN.
Qitty,
nascar broadcasts are actually more like 4 hours long, and they are driving in circles the whole time. its a motor series for drunken alabama idiots.
as for Kimi and Hamilton not liking each other…. PERFECT its SENNA vs. PROST again.