Kobayashi possible for 2010 seat - Howett
Kamui Kobayashi is a possibility for a race seat at Toyota next season, team president John Howett has confirmed. The 23-year-old made his debut in injured Timo Glock's place at Interlagos last weekend, and if German Glock is not recovered by next ...
Kamui Kobayashi is a possibility for a race seat at Toyota next season, team president John Howett has confirmed.
The 23-year-old made his debut in injured Timo Glock's place at Interlagos last weekend, and if German Glock is not recovered by next week, the Japanese will again feature on the Abu Dhabi grid.
It has been believed for some time that Toyota is pushing for Kobayashi, the reigning champion of GP2 Asia, to feature in the F1 lineup, and rumours when Glock had a cold at Suzuka earlier this month caused some reporters to cynically diagnose the German with "Kobayashi fever".
It is rumoured Kobayashi's appearances towards the end of the 2009 season might have some connection with a meeting of Toyota's executive board in Tokyo, when on November 15 the struggling car-making giant will consider the team's budget for 2010.
Kobayashi was praised by some for a high-profile race last Sunday, but there was also some criticism, including by Jenson Button who said the "absolutely crazy" Japanese had been weaving in the braking zones.
Moreover, when asked about Kazuki Nakajima's big crash, Williams' chief engineer Rod Nelson said "Kobayashi moving across him" had resulted in the accident.
Howett told Reuters: "You have to say we have to give him serious consideration but still pace-wise he was a bit slow so we have to see."
Share Or Save This Story
The season is still very long - Rosberg
Jules Bianchi's father speaks of family's continued hopes
Sauber under no illusions about constructors' position
Fernando Alonso earns Michael Schumacher comparison from Jenson Button
Who belongs on F1's Mount Rushmore? Pick your four greatest drivers
Jenson Button identifies key reason behind Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari resurgence
What the drivers are expecting from F1's return to Sepang
How Carlos Sainz bounced back from the most difficult moment of his F1 career
How Fernando Alonso scored ninth at Zandvoort - and how Alex Albon lost a similar payday
Lewis Hamilton warned, Ferrari fined for Bahrain GP impeding
What we learned from Friday practice at the 2026 Bahrain GP in Malaysia
Why ‘Mr Formula E’ has called time on his racing career
F1 Bahrain GP long runs: Max Verstappen the favourite in Malaysia?
What we learned from Friday practice at the 2026 Bahrain GP in Malaysia
The hidden F1 performance differentiator nobody is talking about in 2026
As Mercedes looks to deal F1 2026 knockout blow, will its driver fight reignite?
Top 10 F1 results changed by backmarkers – the passes
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments