2008 F1 driver lineup

We are still in June, not quite at the mid-point of the season, yet already the European media have begun predicting the make-up of the 2008 starting grid. It's not surprising that the game has begun so early this year, especially in Germany where Michael Schumacher is much missed and his kid brother seems to have lost his way. The Germans want to see their young talents advance, with Adrian Sutil moving to a good team and Sebastian Vettel landing a regular race seat. Italy also misses Schuey and some would like to see him come back and replace Räikkönen at Ferrari. Even the Brazilians are getting impatient in seeing young Nelsinho Piquet limited to a testing role at Renault, a team which has lost its panache.

So what are the rumors, from the most serious to the most surprising? To begin with, everyone in both the U.S. and Europe seems convinced that Sébastien Bourdais already has a contract in his pocket to go to Toro Rosso. Christian Klien, relegated to a testing role at Honda, could return with Toyota. Marc Gené, test driver for Ferrari, could go to Toro Rosso, on some kind of loan from the Scuderia. Another tester, Vettel, could move from BMW to Red Bull. Others suggest that Robert Kubica could go to Red Bull to make room for Vettel at BMW. It has also been reported that Kovalainen could go to Williams to make room for Piquet at Renault. Finally, Räikkönen's lack of success so far at Ferrari has led to the strangest speculation. The Finn could see himself replaced by Michael Schumacher, as mentioned earlier, or by Nico Rosberg, whose talent has never been doubted by anyone or, even more astonishing, by Fernando Alonso, disappointed by his experience so far at McLaren. If there's so much speculation already, what will it be like a month from now?