Even amid the chaos of the 2012 pecking order, the star performer is obvious.

That is the view of former F1 driver Christian Klien, who confirmed to the Austrian news agency APA that one of his current roles is a simulator driver for the sport’s latest winning team, Williams.

“It (2012) is very open,” he said, “but for me Fernando Alonso stands out.”

Equal with Sebastian Vettel, Spaniard Alonso is at the top of the drivers’ world championship, a full eight points clear of Lewis Hamilton.

The Spaniard’s car has been the struggling Ferrari F2012, but he has never finished a race this season lower than ninth (China).

He has therefore scored points at every opportunity, even finishing first and second in Malaysia and Spain respectively.

“Alonso has an inferior car,” Klien explained, “but he uses every single little opportunity.

“He is the most complete driver who gets the most out of the package he has.”

Triple world champion Sir Jackie Stewart agrees that, among arguably the most competitive grid of drivers since the late 80s, Alonso is the standout performer.

“Right now we have the best generation of drivers we’ve had for a while,” the famous Scot told the Spanish sports daily AS.

“Everyone talks about Vettel, who is a great driver, and also Hamilton of course, but there is also Button, Schumacher, Kimi — all champions.

“There are others like Webber who also have the quality to win, young drivers coming up, many of them are very good, but also it is true that Alonso is fantastic.”

Asked why the Spaniard has not added a title to his tally since 2006, Stewart said: “The explanation is easy — he hasn’t had the luck to get the best car.

“Now he has one that isn’t good, but it’s in those circumstances that you see even more the quality that he has,” said Stewart.

Given Alonso’s push to the top of the championship with a sub-standard car, therefore, all the talk about Ferrari writing off the 2012 championship has been silenced for now.

“We have to keep developing the car,” Stefano Domenicali, Ferrari’s team boss, said after Barcelona, where significant upgrades were brought to the F2012 package.

“We are not yet fast enough to consistently fight for the podium, but that is the only option if we want to be in contention for the title,” he insisted.

Bernie Ecclestone has leapt to Lewis Hamilton’s defence amid criticism of the 2008 world champion’s recent driving tactics.
Commentators including Niki Lauda have harshly criticised the 26-year-old for his recent aggressive driving, including crashes and controversy at the most recent grands prix in Monaco and Canada.

But F1 chief executive Ecclestone insisted: “People have been wrong to rubbish Lewis.

“What we want is people racing, and all the people who watch it want that,” he told the Independent.

Hamilton’s boss Martin Whitmarsh also urged Hamilton, who collided with his teammate Jenson Button in Montreal, to keep racing rather than worrying too much about crashing.

“If he holds hold back for fear of having contact then he won’t be the great racer he is and do the job he has to do,” said the McLaren team principal.

Former F1 driver Jos Verstappen wrote in his De Telegraaf newspaper column that the criticisms of Hamilton in recent days have been “exaggerated”.

“He has had two unfortunate races, but each incident must be viewed separately,” said the Dutchman. “In Monaco with Felipe Massa, he did something stupid.

“But the collision with Button last Sunday was not Hamilton’s fault. I could understand his overtaking attempt there and Button could have given him more space.

“Despite all the commotion Hamilton is a great driver. He just needs to empty his head now and get luck back on his side,” said Verstappen.

Christian Klien thinks there is no chance Hamilton will change any time soon.

“He is just a very aggressive driver; a thoroughbred,” the Austrian told Red Bull television Servus TV. “We (F1) need that and it’s because of that many races are so exciting.”

Christian Klien’s manager has admitted he would like to see the Austrian driver in consideration for the remaining F1 race seats in 2011.

Already hoping to secure the second race seat at HRT, 28-year-old Klien’s name has also been casually linked with Renault following injured Robert Kubica’s rally crash.

“Until now, HRT was the only team with a free cockpit,” Roman Rummenigge, who manages the former Jaguar and Red Bull driver, told the Austrian news agency APA.

Klien has also been a test driver with departed BMW and Honda, and was arguably the quickest of HRT’s multiple drivers last year as he sat in for the struggling Spanish team’s regulars on three occasions.

“After the drama with Kubica I must of course follow my duty as manager and also consider Renault as an option,” insisted Rummenigge.

However, Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport claims that of all the reported candidates, the favourite for Kubica’s number 9 cockpit is the grand prix veteran Nick Heidfeld.

The report said the 33-year-old was last week “on the verge” of returning to Mercedes in 2011 as reserve driver, “but since Robert Kubica’s accident, those plans have been postponed”.

With Robert Kubica facing a long recovery from his horror rally crash, the candidates to fill his Renault race seat are beginning to line up.

The Lotus-sponsored team’s boss Eric Boullier acknowledged on Monday that with the Polish regular out for several months, he is likely to look beyond contracted reserve drivers Bruno Senna and Romain Grosjean.

“The difference is that it is not going to be for one race but probably all of the first half of the season,” Flavio Briatore, who visited 26-year-old Kubica in hospital on Monday, is quoted by O Estado de S.Paulo.

“So it has to be an experienced driver. The team has come forward compared to last year, so they will need someone who knows how to race at the front,” added the Italian.

The most famous name in the mix is Kimi Raikkonen.

“I’d be amazed if Kimi is still fit enough for F1,” Martin Brundle wrote on Twitter, “and (the world) rally programme trips over F1 tests.”

Numerous journalists’ attempts to contact Raikkonen’s manager Steve Robertson on Monday were fruitless.

“Personally I’d crowbar (Nico) Hulkenberg from FI (Force India),” continued Brundle, the British commentator and former driver and manager.

Timo Gans, a member of Hulkenberg’s management team, admitted the German would be interested in the appointment, even though he is signed up to be Force India’s Friday driver this year.

“We have a contract with Force India and we will not take the initiative to contact Renault,” Gans told the Daily Mail.

“If Renault should contact us we will start thinking about that, but we are not doing that yet. Hopefully Robert gets well soon,” he added.

Also mentioned have been Nick Heidfeld, Jarno Trulli, Pedro de la Rosa and Christian Klien.

Axed Force India driver Vitantonio Liuzzi visited his friend Kubica on Monday and admitted to 422race.com that he would be interested in sitting in for the Pole.

“It’s obvious that when Renault should be sure that Robert won’t be able to step in the car, this chance might be open and I hope to be chosen instead of somebody else,” he said.

It might be said that Vitaly Petrov is either hoping for an experienced driver to replace Kubica so that he is not forced into a leadership position, or hoping for Renault to promote from within to enhance his status in F1.

“I believe it is senseless to discuss Vitaly’s status because there is no such thing as first pilot and second pilot,” his spokeswoman told Ria Novosti agency.

EUR 10 million would buy a driver the second race seat at HRT alongside Narain Karthikeyan.
That is the claim of Germany’s Bild newspaper, with speculation linking a handful of drivers with the last remaining place on the 2011 grid.

The report said Christian Klien, Davide Valsecchi and Pedro de la Rosa are in the running, but team boss Colin Kolles played down claims the seat is being “sold” to the highest bidder.

“No one needs to come with a suitcase full of cash. It will be enough to have the guarantees of sponsors,” he said.

“We’re not the only ones doing that,” insisted Kolles.

Bild said the EUR 10 million dowry would represent a third of HRT’s entire budget for the season.

Another high profile ‘pay driver’ this season is Renault’s Vitaly Petrov, but as boss Eric Boullier confirms, his sponsors are not his only quality.

“My requirement (for a driver) is sporting success,” the Frenchman is quoted by autohebdo.fr.

“Of course, there is pressure from Bernie Ecclestone and (team owner) Gerard Lopez, each of them with obvious reasons concerning the conquest of new and interesting markets,” added Boullier.

Bruno Senna looks to have bowed out of formula one after a single season.
HRT team boss Colin Kolles admitted on Friday that the Brazilian, whose uncle was the late and great Ayrton Senna, will not be Narain Karthikeyan’s teammate at the Spanish team in 2011.

“I can definitely say that Mr Bruno Senna is not going to race for HRT. 100 per cent not,” Kolles told Reuters news agency.

He said HRT’s other 2010 drivers Christian Klien and Sakon Yamamoto are still in the frame, but did not mention Karthikeyan’s Indian countryman Karun Chandhok.

And admit speculation Vitantonio Liuzzi looks set to be ousted by Force India, Kolles told Autosport that HRT might field a “surprise” for the second cockpit because “maybe some drivers who have contracts might not have seats”.

Team boss Colin Kolles on Wednesday blamed HRT’s lack of success in 2010 on its selection of inexperienced drivers.

The Spanish team, ultimately 11th in the constructors’ championship ahead of Virgin but with the least competitive car in the field, began its debut season with the rookie pairing Bruno Senna alongside Karun Chandhok.

Brazilian Senna contested most of the season but the more experienced Sakon Yamamoto and Christian Klien also drove for HRT in 2010.

“It was a difficult year but we were the most reliable new team,” said Kolles in an interview distributed by the Spanish team.

“I think the only reason why we did not finish tenth is that teams like Lotus and Virgin had more experienced drivers during the whole season.

“I think that in testing we showed quite a good performance in relation to the other new teams,” he added.

Speculation has surrounded the future of Hispania, particularly with the split with 2011 partner Toyota leaving the team precious little time to prepare a better car.

Reports in recent days indicated a possible link with former Super Aguri technical director Mark Preston’s Formtech company, but the Australian has confirmed that he has not been in contact with HRT.

Kolles nevertheless sounds confident.

“We are working to have a better package than last year. Obviously this depends on a lot of factors but we are working to achieve our goals,” he said.

F1′s globalisation has made it harder for drivers from the sport’s traditional markets to find places on the grid.

That is the claim of Austrian Christian Klien, who raced a few times with the struggling new team HRT in 2010 and is hoping for a full season next year.

But with pay-drivers now wielding more power than in the recent past, Klien admitted the task is tough.

“Nico Hulkenberg’s case shows that there are no guarantees,” he is quoted by Vorarlberg Online.

“He had a great debut year with a pole position in Brazil, and he’s out,” said Klien.

“In my own case, I have some options,” he revealed.

“The most obvious one of course is HRT, who are on the verge of establishing themselves as a serious competitor, even if there are some setbacks from time to time.

“In February there was not much of a team and I would not have believed I would contest three grands prix this year. And there’s still some time until March (2011),” added Klien.

He thinks part of his difficulty in establishing a strong full-time return to F1 is geographic.

“It is pretty hard when you are from central Europe,” said Klien, 27.

“F1 has internationalised very quickly and previously as a Briton, an Italian, a Frenchman, you had a good chance,” said the Austrian.

“Today there are more cockpits from before, but the driver market is being fed from many more countries; Russia, India, the southeast Asian region, and now probably Korea and China.

“And if you’re the eighth German, then it is very difficult. Look at France and Italy — 20 years ago there were ten of each. And today?”

The other problem is the economic climate, and the power wielded by drivers who carry substantial commercial backing.

“Even a big name like Kimi Raikkonen in the world rally championship is relying on sponsors to get his cockpit,” said Klien.

“And in F1 the teams are under enormous cost pressure,” he added.

Christian Klien admits he is hopeful of returning to the F1 grid next year with HRT.

Although the struggling Spanish team’s driver-swapping has been much derided within the paddock this season, Austrian Klien says his appointment is a good sign for the future.

“At the end they’ve relied more on experienced drivers,” the Jaguar and Red Bull veteran said in an interview with APA news agency. “It shows that the team is performance-oriented.

“For me I think it’s a positive sign that for next year things will go in the right direction,” said Klien.

He said he is confident he will be back at the wheel next March.

“These two races at the end of the season are definitely a positive signal. After this race we will have some further discussions,” explained Klien.

Asked if he will be disappointed if he is not selected by HRT to race in 2011, he admitted: “Yes, you could say that.

“At Virgin there is a place available there and possibly two seats at HRT.”

Klien admitted his chances will be boosted significantly if he can find some significant sponsorship.

“Today in the private teams, it is almost a must to bring money.”

Christian Klien will follow up his Interlagos race seat with another grand prix outing for the HRT team in Abu Dhabi this weekend.

A hint about the struggling Spanish team’s driver lineup for the 2010 finale came earlier this week, when it emerged that Austrian Klien had travelled from Brazil to the Middle East while Japanese regular Sakon Yamamoto was still in Tokyo.

As was the case in Brazil, HRT is shedding no light on the reasons for the Yamamoto substitution.

But it is believed the team is hoping to luck into a good result late this season in order to beat Lotus to the coveted tenth place in the constructors’ standings.

Klien, 27, has appeared to be the most competitive of the four drivers fielded this year by HRT, including Bruno Senna and Karun Chandhok.

“It’s my third chance to compete for the team this season and I’m getting more and more used to the car and the crew,” said the Austrian, who will be learning the Yas Marina layout on Friday.

Christian Klien has travelled to Abu Dhabi this week hoping to get another race outing with the Spanish team.

Without an official reason being given, the team’s Austrian reserve driver replaced Japanese regular Sakon Yamamoto in Brazil and significantly outqualified team regular Bruno Senna.

His race was then ruined after his car stopped on the way to the grid, but team boss Colin Kolles praised his ability to “easily keep up with the other new teams’ pace”.

But Klien is not sure he will be back in the driving seat for the 2010 finale this weekend.

“I hope so, but I haven’t even asked,” he is quoted by Kleine Zeitung newspaper.

Klien is already thinking further ahead, and welcomes the news that HRT, to use a Williams gearbox in 2011, has a new financial investor. It is also believed that the basis of the team’s next car will be the 2010 Toyota.

“In any case, the team will be an attractive employer for 2011,” said Klien.

A rain-soaked track that was drying by the end of the qualification so far that could be driven on the drying racing line with dry tires gave the fans an extremely exciting time trials for the Grand Prix of Brazil. For under such conditions was Red Bull’s superiority going on – basically everyone had displayed in the top 10 the way to the end in front.

And that proved true in the last round, when Nico Hulkenberg import in the Williams, with more than one second ahead of his first pole position – before the two Red Bull drivers Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel.

Landed behind Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, Rubens Barrichello, Robert Kubica, Michael Schumacher, Felipe Massa and Vitaly Petrov.

After the first qualifying round, the seven slowest drivers dropped out: Adrian Sutil (Force India), Timo Glock (Virgin), Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen (both Lotus), Lucas di Grassi (Virgin), Christian Klien and Bruno Senna ( Both HRT).

At the end of the second round the following drivers had the slowest laps park your car in the pits: Jenson Button (McLaren-Mercedes), Kamui Kobayashi (Sauber), Nico Rosberg (Mercedes), Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso), Sébastien Buemi ( Toro Rosso), Nick Heidfeld (Sauber) and Vitantonio Liuzzi (Force India).

Christian Klien will be back in action for the HRT team at this weekend’s Brazilian grand prix.

The Austrian also replaced Japanese Sakon Yamamoto in Singapore due to food poisoning, but no reason has been given for the change of drivers ahead of the Interlagos event.

“I am very happy to get a second opportunity to do another grand prix here after Singapore and I hope that we are doing a good weekend with positive results,” said Klien, 27.

He has raced at Interlagos twice before, most recently in 2005 with Red Bull.

The Austrian newspaper Kleine Zeitung said recently Klien might return to the Cosworth-powered F110 cockpit in Brazil or Abu Dhabi in a last-ditch effort to help HRT beat Lotus to tenth place in the constructors’ championship.

After Sunday’s Korean grand prix, Christian Klien could return to the wheel of the HRT for one or both of the remaining races of 2010.

That is the claim of the Austrian newspaper Kleine Zeitung, recalling the 27-year-old’s strong performance with the struggling Spanish team in Singapore recently.

With his apparent food poisoning gone, Japanese pay-driver Sakon Yamamoto returned to the Cosworth-powered car in Japan and Korea.

But Kleine Zeitung said HRT is now considering putting reserve driver Klien back in the car for Brazil or Abu Dhabi, in a last-ditch effort to beat Lotus to tenth place in the constructors’ world championship.

Lotus has been the best of the three new teams in 2010, but neither it, HRT or Virgin has scored a single point.

Lotus is currently tenth due to Heikki Kovalainen’s 12th place finish at Suzuka, but an eleventh for HRT or Virgin at Interlagos or Yas Marina next month would see Lotus overhauled.

Only the top ten constructors share in the annual distribution of prize-money under the provisions of the Concorde Agreement.

Klien said in Yeongam that 2010 has shown that some pay-drivers are not necessarily the best value for F1 teams relying on the lucrative Bernie Ecclestone income.

“There is one at Virgin and Renault, and possibly two at Hispania,” he said.

But Klien acknowledged that a surprise result for HRT with the F110 car is unlikely.

“We are the only team that, since the season opener in Bahrain, has not aerodynamically improved its car,” he said.

He is therefore more hopeful about 2011.

“In March next year, I definitely see myself in a formula one cockpit,” said Klien.

HRT will publish the names of its race drivers for the Japanese grand prix “as soon as possible”, a team spokesman said on Wednesday.

The struggling Spanish outfit sent out a confusing message on Tuesday by issuing a pre-Suzuka press release that didn’t mention any of its four contracted drivers.

Team boss Colin Kolles later clarified that the lineup will be Bruno Senna alongside Sakon Yamamoto, but declined to guarantee the pair will actually drive all weekend in Japan.

A team spokesman then said that after travelling from Europe to Japan, he will endeavour to provide driver’s quotes to the media “as soon as possible”.

Another team spokesperson told Auto Motor und Sport that HRT is not planning to change its regular driver lineup for Suzuka, after Christian Klien replaced Yamamoto in Singapore because the Japanese apparently had food poisoning.

“As normal it will be Sakon Yamamoto and Bruno Senna,” she said.

Austrian media reports said reserve driver Klien travelled to Japan on Tuesday.

As far as the FIA is concerned, Yamamoto will be at the wheel of one of the Cosworth-powered F110s this weekend, having summoned him to Thursday afternoon’s official press conference.

“But no knowing if that means he’ll be in the car on Friday,” wrote BBC commentator Jonathan Legard on Twitter. “Sushi food poisoning this time?”