Yesterday's news that Lola are considering a return to F1 was very welcome in spite of the company's ill-starred attempts in the past. Most fans will recall how poorly Lola chassis did in the eighties and nineties but I remember a happier time, the sixties, when Lola supplied winning chassis to Bowmaker, Reg Parnell and Honda. The fact that two of the drivers I rated most highly in that era (John Surtees and Chris Amon) spent time driving Lolas made me particularly well disposed towards the company and I have long hoped for a properly-funded return by a factory Lola team. It seems that I may get my way.
John Surtees in the 1962 Lola Mk 4
Now that Dave Richards has announced that he may bring Aston Martin into the game too, the potential for new F1 entries has risen to three, counting USF1, of course. This has given rise to a flurry of speculation regarding other projects from GP2 and suddenly we are presented with the possibility of teams having to compete for places on the grid. How different a prospect this is from the doom and gloom of recent history, when it seemed that the grid could only shrink as manufacturer teams departed.
Much depends on Mosley's budget cap being finalized for next year and the forthcoming negotiations between FOTA and the FIA regarding the exact figure for the spend assumes even more importance. But as long as the cap does not go beyond $60m, interest from new entrants should remain.
While prospects for new teams look bright at the moment, some of the drivers have reason to fear the future, however. Piquet Jr is said to have three races to prove himself or he will be out and Bruno Senna will get the second Renault drive. That may or may not be true but it seems likely, the sight of Flavio Briatore shaking his head at Nelsinho's latest off in the Chinese GP perhaps being more indicative of his feelings than any public statement.
Another whose seat must be in danger after lackluster performances so far this year, is Sebastien Bourdais. While his rookie team mate, Buemi, has exceeded expectations, Bourdais has had a troubled time with little but excuses to defend himself. Blaming the car never has gone down well at Toro Rosso and Sebastien needs several good races if he is to avoid the axe.
Fisichella, too, is said to be under pressure at Force India and Liuzzi is apparently getting excited, although he is careful to talk only in terms of 2010. I would say that is a certainty and that the chances are Liuzzi will get the seat a little earlier than that. Fizzy is one of the old guard and is looking ready for retirement now.
At Williams, Kazuki Nakajima is on most fans' lists of potential expulsions but I think the Toyota connection will keep him in the seat for this year. Heikki Kovalainen should also survive the season, his awful start being compensated for by a sound performance in China. But rumors of Alonso taking Raikkonen's seat at Ferrari in 2010 look very strong and Kimi is going to have to improve remarkably if he is to hang on for another year. I suspect he will go of his own volition at the end of the season anyway.
What it means is that, after an off season in which there was very little movement in the driver market, we are likely to see a lot of changes before the 2010 season begins. If the new teams succeed in their bids for entry, they will need drivers, most of whom will be new to F1. Vacated seats amongst the existing teams will also increase the chances for young hopefuls and the grid is bound to look very different next year.
There is a lot of promise amongst the new talent waiting at the edge of the sport. Apart from Bruno Senna, Romain Grosjean and Kamui Kobayashi are likely to find drives and Paul di Resta and Nico Hulkenberg are certainly worth a try. Some of the old guard might also be attractive to new teams as well - Christian Klien springs to mind for a start. For those who drop out this year, however, I think the chances have gone; they will have had over a year in which to prove themselves and failed.
It all amounts to a fascinating period of change, both for the teams and the drivers. With the pecking order upset so much by Brawn GP, Toyota and Red Bull this year, we have the prospect of even more factors to be added to the mix next year. Amazingly, F1 suddenly looks pretty healthy in the midst of the recession and Ferrari may be quite right to be muttering about "garagistas". Bring it on, say I!