Bourdais to secure second Toro Rosso seat
02/03/09 French website Toile F1 claims to have ‘exclusive’ information that Sebastien Bourdais will sign for Toro Rosso this week.
01/28/09 (GMM) Sebastien Bourdais' manager hopes that by the end of the week the Frenchman's future will be clear.
It has been reported that Toro Rosso has decided to keep the 29-year-old former Champ Car champion for a second season, but his manager Nicolas Todt would not confirm the news.
"For the moment, nothing is done. We are having discussions with Toro Rosso and also with other series, and right now nothing is set," Todt told French radio Europe 1.
Todt said he hopes the discussions will be concluded by "the end of January".
"I am quite confident that something good will come out of it in the coming days," he added, although confirming that Toro Rosso is requiring Sebastien Buemi's 2009 teammate to bring sponsors.
"They have been very clear about needing a driver with a budget," Todt admitted.
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| Sebastien Bourdais |
01/22/09 (GMM) Reports in the Swiss and French press on Thursday suggest Sebastien Bourdais will shortly be confirmed as Toro Rosso's second race driver for the 2009 season.
The 29-year-old Frenchman raced with the Faenza based team last year, but so far only the Swiss rookie Sebastien Buemi has been confirmed for the forthcoming season.
2009 would therefore be Bourdais' second season in formula one, following his mixed debut, when he finished the championship with just 4 points compared with his Red Bull-bound teammate Sebastian Vettel's 35.
It is reported by the Swiss magazine Speedweek, with close links to the team's owner Red Bull, that Toro Rosso selected Bourdais over the other candidate for the seat, Takuma Sato.
The French website sport24.com speculated that Sato's expected personal sponsorship may have dwindled as the Japanese recession worsens.
Bourdais' manager Nicolas Todt would not confirm the news but insisted that "we are always in negotiations".
Moreover, the official website of the Ferrari-powered team is now showing Bourdais and Buemi as the drivers in the 'team' section.