There is talk of who will join Robert Kubica at Renault F1 next season. This is the next step in the “Silly Season” process as the best drives are assigned to the best drivers in the F1 pecking order. Vitaly Petrov has done a very decent job as a new boy up against the much more experienced Kubica, but that may not be enough as Renault has big ambitions and may want to pick up a better driver: there are a number of options available, notably Sebastien Buemi and Adrian Sutil. A Renault drive would be a step up for either man. Much depends on funding, but the team is expected to have a free choice of drivers in 2011, rather than needing to look at those who have cash. There are, however, strategic questions to be answered. GenII, the company that controls the team, has much business in Russia and may wish to continue with Petrov, as there is much potential in that market. Renault too would probably like that arrangement as it is in the process of cementing its relationship with AutoVAZ, the Russian car builder that is using the Renault Logan as the base for some of its Lada production models. This is a very lucrative arrangement for Renault and it would be wise to continue, particularly as Lada is already a sponsor of the team.
At the weekend there was an F1 demonstration in Moscow and this has inevitably led to suggestions that there will be a Russian GP at some point in the future. From what we hear the plans for a race in Sochi have failed to get off the ground because of lack of available funding and there is no more sign of a race in Moscow than there was 30 years ago when the first discussions were held.
joeblogsf1 
Renault also launched the Logan in India a couple of years back but it didn’t do well. Would Renault then consider Chandhok as an option? They can have a humongous market to tap that way.
You know in the past…. drivers got hired cos they could drive quick and not crash too much…..
Teams should start hiring drivers like that again instead of picking a driver for political bullshit reasons….
Petrov sucks, hes scored virtually no points and breaks the car all the time.
They should have put Villeneuve in with Kubica in 2010…… hell even Heidfeld or Davidson…. both decent drivers too.
I would say either going with Andrean Sutil or Kimi (If he’s planning to come back). Both are really aggressive Renault style drivers…
Apparently Buemi is now confirmed to be locked-up with Red Bull for the foreseeable future.
If Renault aren’t willing to give Petrov another go next season, then I would snatch up Adrian Sutil.
It seems as though he’s powering through the learning curve at this point in his career and he would be a nice complement to Kubica in terms of personality, driving style, etc.
Money and connections talk. It looks like Renault will seat Petrov next year and possibly beyond if they want that Russian market.
Buemi has already been confirmed at Toro Rosso for next season
Petrov has done a decent job. I’d say he deserves to get the seat for at least the first half of next season to see how he develops. If, after then, he isn’t going anywhere then fair enough, but it seems a bit harsh to get rid of him at this stage.
What of the Raikkonen connection? And why are people still talking about it if he has “committed” himself to rallying? Could Red Bull be paying him just not to compete against him?
What if Weber wins the title? Will we see him retire?
Logan are absolute hit here in Russia, so it’s very possible RF1 will keep Petrov.
Buemi has distanced himself from that confirmation of staying with Toro Rosso next year. Apparently he hasn’t signed anything with the team. The team want to keep him though.
I think he will eventually stay if there isn’t a decent seat left for him, and other than the potential Renault move, I see anything else as a step back.
Force India, sure, if Sutil moves on, but Toro Rosso should really be mixing it up with them next season with ease.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the grid looks nearly identical next year.
Any real analysis of Petrov show that he has not done particularly well. On average the difference in his times (both qualifying and race) to Kubes is bigger than Grosjean was to Alonso (and he did not have any benefit of testing). This is not so obvious since the Renault is about the fourth best car (I think it is a better overall package than the Merc) this season. With a lot more points scored than last year they will have more funds next year and be less reliant on a paying for the second driver. Nick Heidfeld over the last three seasons is the fifth highest point scorer (and therefore income generator) but I suspect Robert would not want to have a such an equal team mate. Sutil is probably the best bet.
Another thought, since Lotus appear to be interested in getting Renault engines Petrov might end up there next year – he is still connected to the Renault name but frees them to get a driver who could score more points for the team.