Former F1 driver Mika Salo believes his Finnish countryman Valtteri Bottas is being groomed by Williams for a race seat — in 2012.

When the Toto Wolff-managed Bottas, 22, was announced as the British team’s 2012 reserve, Sir Frank Williams said he would practice on 15 Friday mornings and then “most likely” be replaced with a “more experienced driver” for the rest of those race weekends.

That more experienced driver would ultimately turn out to be Bruno Senna.

So with Brazilian Senna struggling so far in 2012, Salo has revealed he senses things could be about to change.

“Bottas is incredibly respected by the team,” Salo, now a commentator for the Finnish broadcaster MTV3, said.

“When I spoke with Frank Williams, he praised Valtteri to the skies, and said that he belongs in the races.

“I asked him when and he said it wouldn’t be long.

“Yes, I read between the lines that he means this season,” added Salo.

One major spanner in the works, however, is that Senna brings crucial sponsorship to Williams.

“It is a difficult situation for Williams, where both drivers bring money,” Salo acknowledged.

“But the good thing is that Frank Williams is not a businessman first, he is an old racing driver. He thinks about nothing else but how to make his team successful.

“Although Senna is a nice guy, he is not able to drive at the level that he needs to be at.”

When asked about Salo’s theory, Bottas commented: “I have no information.”

Sebastian Vettel has hit back at what he thinks was an “exaggerated” reaction to Michael Schumacher after the recent Bahrain grand prix.

Schumacher, Vettel’s countryman and friend, had heavily criticised the sport’s official supplier Pirelli, despite the Italian marque’s 2012 tyres being widely credited for the exciting grands prix seen so far this year.

“It’s been a bit exaggerated,” world champion Vettel, referring to the reaction to Schumacher’s comments, is quoted by Sport Bild.

“Ultimately, we all have the same tyres, but of course as a driver you always want more grip, whether from the tyres or from the car.

“It is in our nature to want more — more especially than the others,” he smiled.

“When I talk about this with Michael, it’s not so dramatic. He has been around for a long time and has seen a lot, also when it comes to tyres.

“I don’t think he is so easily shocked,” insisted Vettel.

* Energy drink Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz made a rare visit to the sport’s action on Thursday, catching the final day of Mugello testing.

Kimi Raikkonen can add a second title to his tally in 2012.

That is the claim of the 2007 world champion’s countryman Mika Salo, who now commentates on Finnish television MTV3.

In the fourth race of Raikkonen’s return to F1 from rallying, the 32-year-old last weekend challenged Sebastian Vettel for victory in Bahrain, finishing second for Lotus.

Five years after his title with Ferrari, he is 19 points from the head of the 2012 drivers’ championship.

“The most consistent team has been Lotus,” former grand prix driver Salo said. “They’ve been fast at every circuit so far.

“In that sense, Kimi’s situation looks very good. I would not exclude it at all that he will be fighting at the very end of the championship, if Lotus is able to maintain the pace of development.”

It is on Salo’s final point that Lotus’ 2012 season will really be made.

“They (as Renault) also began the previous season just as well, but soon after they were nowhere,” observed the Swiss commentator Marc Surer, speaking on Austrian television Servus TV.

“So the real question is ‘Do they have the resources to develop the car and stay where they are now?’”

Even if Lotus’ challenge fades, the future for Raikkonen – who has surprised some experts with his re-adaptation to F1 after two years of rallying – is bright, Surer insisted.

“I think he has shown everyone that he is still able to do just what he was doing before (leaving F1),” he said.

“He is a lot younger than Schumacher, and if you look at the past ten years, he is probably one of the best talents that we have seen in F1.”

Surer said he could therefore imagine Raikkonen leaving Lotus and returning to a ‘top’ team, but he wouldn’t know which one to recommend.

“Everything is so balanced this year that it’s impossible to pick a car that he could win the championship in.”

Just after backing his friend and countryman to bounce back, Rubens Barrichello has refused to rule out returning to formula one to replace the struggling Felipe Massa.

After 19 consecutive seasons in F1, 39-year-old Barrichello had to switch to the Indycar series for 2012 after losing his race seat at Williams.

Speaking to Brazilian television Sportv this week, however, the Brazilian said he cannot rule out returning to the grid — even with Ferrari.

After a six-year tenure, Barrichello left Ferrari at the end of 2005 and – until now – has not looked back overly fondly on his treatment alongside the famous Italian team’s former number one Michael Schumacher.

But in the wake of Massa’s recent performance struggles, Barrichello was voted in an Italian poll as the ideal replacement for the diminutive 30-year-old.

When asked about Ferrari, Barrichello said this week: “I want the fans to understand that I don’t have any hard feelings.

“If they called me today to go drive for them I would go. It was the best team I’ve ever driven for in terms of support, of creativity. But there were definitely some spicy episodes,” he added.

With the backing of sponsors, Barrichello has signed on with the KV team in Indycar for 2012, but he insists he is “completely open” about returning to F1.

“It would be something to think about,” he said in the televised interview on Wednesday.

“I think anything can happen. I’m not saying it will happen, but I have to be ready.”

Barrichello, the longest-serving driver in F1 history, revealed that he still enjoys the backing of Bernie Ecclestone, the sport’s influential chief executive.

“He asked me if I was really going to race in Indycar and I told him ‘Yeah, because you didn’t find me a place in F1′,” he joked.

“He said he will see what he can do about it. Really, you just have to see what happens, you have to stay open about it,” added Barrichello.

Rubens Barrichello has advised his friend and countryman Felipe Massa to remember to enjoy his job, amid rumours the Brazilian is speeding towards the exit at Ferrari.

Speculation is rife that amid his apparently worsening performance slump, Massa will be replaced by the famous Italian team — perhaps as soon as within the 2012 season.

F1 veteran Barrichello, who has switched to Indycar this year after losing his Williams seat, told Brazil’s Globo Esporte that he thinks Massa’s problem is psychological.

“It’s not a speed problem,” he said, “it’s something that he needs to solve within himself.

“He has to close his eyes and enjoy, remembering that he does this because he likes it.

“Every time that I lost a little bit, it was because I had forgotten that I did it because I liked to. So we (drivers) have to relax and improve that way.

“(For Massa) it is just a moment, and every moment and race in formula one is a cycle of life.”

Barrichello’s advice for Massa may be particularly relevant, as he was at Ferrari during Michael Schumacher’s ultra-successful reign last decade.

Now, it is Fernando Alonso who is the Maranello team’s favoured son.

“Of course Ferrari loves Alonso, because he is one of the best, if not the best who is there (in F1) now,” said Barrichello, 39.

“So, it’s tough for Felipe.”

Barrichello also laughed at the results of a recent fans’ poll in the Italian media that showed he would be a highly popular choice as Massa’s replacement.

“It was very unexpected,” he said. “Maybe it was a way (for journalists) to see if Italians would pick an Italian driver, and suddenly I win.

“It is a very public business and shows that I must have left something behind,” added the winner of 11 grands prix.

 Fernando Alonso is F1′s ‘driver of the decade’, according to Pedro de la Rosa.
The HRT driver said that, in his opinion, his Spanish countryman has been even better in F1′s modern history than Michael Schumacher, who won every world championship between 2000 and 2004.

Alonso, now at Ferrari, won his titles with Renault in 2005 and 2006.

De la Rosa told Mundo Deportivo: “I think Fernando was the best of the decade, over Michael.

“Why? Because no matter what the rules, he was always on top; with grooved tyres, with slicks, with blown diffusers, with double diffusers, with Pirelli, Bridgestone, Michelin …

“If you look at it, he is the most complete.”

As for the 2012 contest, however, de la Rosa has another favourite. Asked to pick this season’s champion, he hesitated before answering: “I think (Lewis) Hamilton.”

 Nico Hulkenberg has played down claims Force India could be a podium-getting ‘dark horse’ of the 2012 season.
Behind the top battle involving Red Bull, McLaren and Mercedes, there appears a closely-packed midfield, with potential challengers including Ferrari, Toro Rosso, Sauber and Force India.

German Hulkenberg is returning to F1 with Silverstone based Force India this season, after being ousted by Williams at the end of 2010.

Asked what his goals are by Germany’s Sport1, the 24-year-old answered: “First I want to establish myself (in F1), after the bad experience of 2010.

“A couple of points would also be great,” he smiled.

Some pundits, however, are predicting that podiums may be possible for Hulkenberg – the 2010 Brazil GP pole sitter – and his highly rated teammate Paul di Resta.

“Clearly this is a dream,” the German admitted.

“But at the moment I don’t think that’s our goal. Of course if we should be in that situation in a race, then we will try everything for it.”

Hulkenberg conceded that Force India is not ready to challenge F1′s frontrunners.

“I think Red Bull have their nose in front again, and McLaren are the closest to them. I have no idea what Ferrari are doing at the moment and Mercedes is also difficult to assess because they haven’t shown much.”

He said countryman Sebastian Vettel’s crown, however, may be challenged.

“It’s clear that he is the man to beat,” said Hulkenberg.

 Bruno Senna has confirmed reports he has signed with Williams for a single season only.
We reported recently that the former HRT and Renault driver, reportedly taking EUR 14 million in sponsorship to the famous Oxfordshire based team, is guaranteed the seat for 2012 only.

With countryman Felipe Massa’s Ferrari contract also expiring this year, the situation raises the prospect that there will be no Brazilians in F1 in 2013.

“All drivers, Brazilian or not, have great pressure to deliver results,” Senna is quoted by Agencia Estado.

“Of course it is very important to have Brazilians in formula one, but we always do the best we can, regardless of the duration of the contract.

“I think this is the beginning of my career, as with a good job this year, we can extend the contract and, god willing, keep on getting better in the future,” he added.

“Last year at this time all I could do was work on my fitness, but now I am driving the car, working with the engineers in the team and doing everything else that has made all the difference in this preseason.

“I have got to this stage of the championship with a preparation probably better than last year when I finished the race in Brazil,” he added.

The 28-year-old said Williams’ target for this season is to score points regularly, after a woeful 2011.

“All the teams have taken a leap forward; I think Force India, Toro Rosso and Sauber are strong,” said the Brazilian.

“Lotus seems to be strong, Mercedes as well. Ferrari do not seem to have the performance, unless they are hiding their game.

“It seems like McLaren and Red Bull are a little in front of everyone.

“I think the big surprise has been Caterham, who seem to have a reasonable performance. So it’ll be very interesting to see what will happen,” added Senna.

Charles Pic’s situation leading into his rookie season in formula one is “sad and frustrating”.

That is the claim of his manager Olivier Panis, the 1996 Monaco grand prix winner and former Toyota racer and McLaren test driver.

His well-sponsored countryman Pic, 22, will debut in Melbourne this month alongside the experienced Timo Glock, having never turned a wheel in his 2012 car.

Ahead of next weekend’s season opener, the new Marussia is yet to pass all the FIA crash tests, which has left the former Virgin team grounded throughout February’s test period.

“It’s sad and frustrating,” admitted Panis, when asked about Pic’s situation.

“The beginning will be difficult for him,” he told RMC.

For F1′s backmarkers, including HRT who have also struggled through the winter, the tougher crash tests are just another hurdle, atop tackling the financial might of rival giants like Ferrari and Red Bull.

The sport’s chief executive Bernie Ecclestone is unapologetic.

“If we tried to make things less complicated, you will always find the guys at the top looking for that tenth of a second.

“That’s the difference between the winners and losers,” he told the Sun newspaper.

 Felipe Massa may have kept his seat at Ferrari for economic reasons.
That is the view of Keke Rosberg, the 1982 world champion and father of Mercedes race driver Nico.

Keke’s Finnish countryman Mika Salo, a former Ferrari driver, told MTV3 last week he was “surprised” Brazilian Massa kept his seat for 2012 after two consecutively poor seasons.

Massa already had a contract for 2012, but at the end of 2009 – when Kimi Raikkonen was replaced by Fernando Alonso – Ferrari showed it is not afraid of paying handsomely to end a deal.

So is Rosberg also surprised Massa is still Alonso’s teammate?

“I think that’s been influenced by the fact that they burned quite a lot of money with Kimi,” the 63-year-old said.

“They could have again paid off the guy with the contract and taken someone else, but at some point you have to be economically mindful — you can’t always go for the most expensive option,” added Rosberg.

Former Ferrari driver Mika Salo has admitted he was “surprised” his former team opted to honour Felipe Massa’s contract for 2012.
The Finn, who raced at the famous Maranello team for a time in 1999 after Michael Schumacher broke his leg, said Fernando Alonso is the “clear number one” nowadays.

“I don’t think Massa will be staying after this season,” former Sauber and Toyota driver Salo, who attended last week’s Jerez test, told the Finnish broadcaster MTV3.

“I was surprised that he was allowed to continue this year.”

Salo, 45, said there is a similar pecking-order at Red Bull, where Sebastian Vettel last year utterly dominated his teammate Mark Webber.

He also commented on McLaren’s duo, comprising two world champions.

“If McLaren has a good car then the drivers will be taking points off one another — that’s not something that will happen in the other teams.

“On the track, (Lewis) Hamilton is the fastest but not quite as smart as (Jenson) Button in the races.”

Salo sees less of a close battle at Lotus this year, where his countryman Kimi Raikkonen is returning to F1 alongside GP2 champion Romain Grosjean.

“Kimi should be much faster than Grosjean,” he said, “who is only there because (Eric) Boullier is his manager.”

As for Williams’ lineup of Pastor Maldonado alongside Bruno Senna, Salo said: “I think this is one of the worst pairings. Both are susceptible to mistakes.

“Senna had few good races last year but faded badly by the end.

“Maldonado is a bit of a hothead, so I don’t see it being a good year for them.

“For (test driver) Valtteri Bottas there could be a good opportunity to get a race.”

Dani Clos insists he is delighted with his new role as HRT tester, despite some seeing him as little more than a ‘pay driver’.
A reporter for Spain’s Diario AS newspaper admitted to the 23-year-old from Barcelona that when he read the news about his Clos’ new role, he surmised that the driver must have some lucrative backers.

“That’s definitely not why I’m here,” Clos insisted.

He admitted however that he is also “looking at some options” to split his time between HRT and another race series this season.

“There are offers but I’m happy with HRT. Some people would give their right arm to be here.”

Clos conceded, however, that if he had lots more money to spend on formula one, he might have been appointed as Pedro de la Rosa’s teammate in the place of Narain Karthikeyan.

“It’s obvious that if you contribute more then you have more options,” he said, “but for me this is my place now, and where I have to be right now.”

He revealed that the role will include running on Friday mornings at grands prix, rather than the symbolic role played by many ‘test drivers’ nowadays.

“Yes, yes, I’ll do Fridays,” said Clos. “I will not be one of those who are there just to be there.”

He also denied that his new deal could fall apart the way countryman Andy Soucek’s did at Virgin in 2010, when the Spaniard was promised track time that never materialised.

“I have no fear in that regard,” insisted Clos. “I trust the team.”

 Some distance may have crept into their relationship, but Mark Webber insists there is no tension between himself and fellow Australian Daniel Ricciardo.
Ricciardo, the 22-year-old who has stepped up from HRT last year to the full-time Toro Rosso race seat for 2012, told the Melbourne Age newspaper that Webber – at the senior team Red Bull – is keeping his distance despite earlier easing his transition into the world of F1.

The feeling in the F1 paddock is that Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko is grooming Ricciardo and Toro Rosso’s other new driver Jean-Eric Vergne to potentially succeed Webber as world champion Sebastian Vettel’s next teammate.

As for the distance between him and Webber now that they are in competition for the same seat, Ricciardo said: “I guess he’s still got his career now and his things to worry about — I’ll try not to get in his way too much.

“And, you know, now we are on the same route together, maybe he doesn’t want to tell me too much but that is completely understandable.”

35-year-old Webber, however, insisted there is no real tension with his countryman.

“Not at all, you know, I’ve been through enough on and off the track to know that nothing is forever,” he said.

“I was supposed to be replaced by Kimi (Raikkonen) four years ago,” he laughed, referring to the notorious F1 rumour-mill.

Nico Rosberg has hinted strongly that he intends to stay at Mercedes GP beyond the expiry of his current contract.
The German’s current deal reportedly runs to the end of next season, but boss Norbert Haug has revealed he intends to keep the current team together beyond 2012.

Asked if the talks are already taking place, Rosberg told Germany’s T-Online: “Yes, they are.

“We have talked about a long-term commitment as I feel very comfortable in the team. It is a great project. I don’t want to go into more detail than that.”

When asked if he is also “actively” looking for possible opportunities with other teams, Rosberg insisted: “Actively, no.”

Rosberg was also asked about his countryman and new back to back world champion Sebastian Vettel’s 2011 season, with the interviewer describing it as “flawless”.

“Flawless? I’ve had a season like that, too,” said the German. “I have made very, very few mistakes.

“The same as last year. I have driven very consistently but it’s not so obvious because we are driving further behind.”

He is also expecting Red Bull to be ahead of the pack in 2012.

“They have a head-start, obviously,” said Rosberg. “We need to catch up and that will take some time.”

Finally, he denied that the constant questions about his teammate Michael Schumacher are “annoying”.

“That’s not the right word. It’s just that I have to talk about it all the time. They (the questions) always used to be about my father, now they’re about Michael Schumacher.

“I’m used to it now,” smiled Rosberg.

Daniel Ricciardo is not relaxed about his future in formula one.
Recently seen as the natural successor to his countryman Mark Webber at Red Bull, the 22-year-old Australian has struggled to get up to speed with Vitantonio Liuzzi after replacing Narain Karthikeyan at HRT earlier this year.

The move was funded by his backers Red Bull but Ricciardo is contracted to the energy drinks company only to the end of 2011.

With Sebastien Buemi, Jaime Alguersuari and Jean-Eric Vergne all also in the running for Red Bull’s junior seats at Toro Rosso, the West Australian newspaper concludes that Ricciardo’s future is clouded.

“I’ve got the next few races,” said the upbeat Ricciardo on Saturday, when it was announced his teammate Liuzzi will sit out India next weekend to make way for Karthikeyan’s one-off return.

“They (the last three races) still play a part for next year, so for me it’s important to stay focused on those and not watch what the other guys are doing and what I’m doing too much off the track.

“I’ll be very disappointed if I don’t have a place next year, but it’s one of those things,” he continued.

“There’s only limited space. I think obviously having Red Bull and hopefully impressing them enough this year, they’ll continue and put me in somewhere.”