Formula One news
Klien: There have been requests
19 August 2009With six more cars due to be on the starting grid next year, Christian Klien hopes to find the opening he is looking for and re-enter Formula One for the first time since 2006. The Austrian has tested for Honda, Spyker and now BMW since last racing but believes that chances of competing again are higher than ever for 2010.
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| Klien entered F1 as team-mate to Mark Webber at Jaguar in 2004 |
With the arrival of the Campos, Manor and USF1 teams to F1 next season, the total number of competitors will rise from 20 to 26, the highest number of entries since the mid-1990s. Although BMW will be pulling out as a manufacturer, either the Swiss BMW-Sauber team will remain in the sport under new ownership or a fourth new outfit will grace the grid as a replacement.
"Peter Sauber said that there have been worse problems to solve in his career," Klien commented on his website. "The team has proved more than once what they can achieve with limited resources; the spirit of the people is just great and the times of unlimited budgets are over anyway - with all this brilliant human capital in Hinwil I see no reason why they should not be able to build a very competitive racing car for 2010."
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| Christian competed in this year's Le Mans 24h with Peugeot |
Christian, now 26, is still unable to state whether or not he will be one of the team's drivers. "At the moment, this is pure speculation as the overall situation is still too unclear," he admitted. "How I can contribute at this point is by staying super fit to the maximum and being prepared, just like I trained on my bicycle in the heat every day while I was on holiday. Also, I can collect as much data as possible for the development department when we go straight-line testing and the endurance car races like those at Sebring, Spa or Le Mans help a lot to keep my neck and my reflexes in shape."
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| Klien soon hopes to discover his 2010 destiny |
Klien did reveal, however, that a number of F1 teams have already been in touch this year. "There have been requests throughout the season," he recalled. "In F1 everything is always on the move; the new teams are very interested in drivers with experience but a certain long-term perspective - at only 26 and now in my sixth F1 season, I think I can offer both.
"Also, the established teams are looking around for new drivers at the moment - a few drivers are on the way out or changing teams; despite those requests that I have received, the team from Hinwil would be my first choice - the technical resources are great and the passion for racing fits very well with my idea of an F1 team."
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