Whitmarsh awaits Alonso to make his decisions for 2010
McLaren-Mercedes team director, Martin Whitmarsh, did not seem in a hurry this weekend to make a decision on the drivers who will race future McLarens next season. The Englishman believes that it is Fernando Alonso who currently holds the key to the transfer dance and is waiting to learn more about the Spaniard before making […]
McLaren-Mercedes team director, Martin Whitmarsh, did not seem in a hurry this weekend to make a decision on the drivers who will race future McLarens next season. The Englishman believes that it is Fernando Alonso who currently holds the key to the transfer dance and is waiting to learn more about the Spaniard before making decisions for his team.
The transfer season is in full swing and after four weeks of vacation, rumors really stirred the paddocks this weekend at the European Grand Prix in Valencia (Spain). On this occasion, several Formula 1 figures commented on the current situation. Whitmarsh has not yet made any decisions about his driver lineup’s future but will undoubtedly keep Hamilton.
The forecasts are less optimistic for Heikki Kovalainen. The Finn has been put under pressure to achieve better results and is said to be in competition with Nico Rosberg. Nevertheless, the McLaren boss does not comment on anything, waiting for developments in the Alonso case to finalize his 2010 line-up. According to him, the transfer market will only open once Alonso has confirmed his move to Ferrari for 2010.
« For the moment we have had no negotiations with drivers for the next season and we will see later. » Comments the English on the microphone of the BBC, the English channel equivalent to TF1 in France.
« In fact, I think there will probably be some changes with Alonso, especially at Ferrari. For now, the situation is frozen because of these key points. It is these key points that drive the transfers… »
« We all clearly know that Alonso and Ferrari are a possible duo, and this bothers other teams. The case of BMW is also important. For now, we are focused on our performance and our current drivers. »
Whitmarsh then discusses Kovalainen’s performance, who had an unremarkable race this weekend despite a very good qualifying: « I think Heikki is doing a good job as a driver and he is very well-liked within the team. For now, he knows what he needs to do to improve (in racing rather than in qualifying), but as a team, we must ensure we have the best line-up… for us, the best would be to see Heikki succeed. » Concluded the Englishman.
As a reminder, Kovalainen was moved to McLaren in 2008 when Alonso returned to Renault.
