Formula 2 GP2 Final Standings

[RasputinLives]

Well top 10 anyways!

Roman Grosjean (Fra) 89pts
Luca Fillipi (ITA) 54pts
Jules Bianchi (FRA) 53pts
Charles Pic (FRA) 52pts
Giedo Van der Garde (HOL) 49pts
Sam Bird (GBR) 45pts
Christian Vietoris (GER) 35pts
David Valsecchi (ITA) 30pts
Dani Clos (SPA) 30pts
Marcus Ericsson (SWE) 25pts

A bit like the F1 season if you exclude Grosjean then it was mighty close! Who do we see graduating up to F1 and who do we see winning GP2 next year?

Grosjean looks a shoe in for a seat somewhere and I see Bianchi going up too despite not having a good a season in GP2 as I thought he would. Usually second place man goes into F1 but I see Fillipi as a bit of a journeymen - same with Van der Garde who was boasting he was in discussions with 3 different F1 teams before the weekend in Monza and then had a terrible weekend and slipped to 5th in the championship.

Charles Pic, Sam Bird and Christian Vietoris all look like great up and coming talent and I think it'll be between those 3 in GP2 next year as don't think any of them are quite ready to jump up yet. Although at 21 Pic has an awesome season. Def one to watch.

Thoughts?

 

[Brogan]

The problem for most of them is there aren't that many good seats.

I know it's every open wheel driver's aim to get in to F1, but HRT or Virgin?...

I was really hoping Webber, Barrichello and Trulli would end their careers this season, opening up the market and making lots of seats available.

 

[RasputinLives]

I know what you mean Bro. I think Barrichello will go and that seat at Williams will probably be filled by Grosjean(due to the Renault engines) - as long as Kubica is back anyways.

But as you say - as for the others is it worth taking the HRT or Virgin route? Virgin doesn't seem to have done Di Grassi or D'ambrosio that many favours. I guess HRT got Senna and Chandhock on the map but neither of them have a drive next year. I guess some might consider the Virgin option now due to the Mclaren links but not sure that would really work.

As for Sam Bird - with his Merc connections I fully expect him to graduate to Force India in 2013 either as test driver or in a race seat as Schumacher will have left the main Merc team by then.

 

[Road of Bones]

Totally agree Brogan

It has been ever thus, sadly - how many potential greats have had to go & ply their trade in ChampCars/IndyCars because of the constipation of the F1 grid? And how many potential greats had their careers stunted by plumping for a back-of-the-grid seat in a shitbox, hoping for a break to get them further up the grid?

It seems that unless you get yourself the right management or financial backers, you might as well not bother knocking on the paddock gates.

As for this year's crop of GP2 drivers - it seems highly likely that Grosjean will find a seat at Renault (presumably at the expense of Petrov? I think they're too enamoured of Bruno Senna at the moment to drop him, and he did drive a good race yesterday). Sam Bird has been linked to Mercedes, so perhaps a testing/DTM route beckons for him. Bianchi already has a slot at Ferrari, so I think he'll end up on the F1 grid eventually (probably via Sauber). Fillipi, GvdG & Valsecchi seem to have been around for ages, so I reckon their F1 ship has sailed, frankly (and GvdG is a bit rubbish, IMO). Charles Pic is an interesting one, as is Dani Clos - on their day they can be splendid, but more often than not it's not their day.

I think we're going to have to wait another year or two for the F1 grid to open up to some GP2 graduates again - and hopefully the likes of Virgin, HRT and Team Caterham will be less uncompetitive by then...I daren't speculate about where Williams will be!

 

[KekeTheKing]

The problem for most of them is there aren't that many good seats.

I was really hoping ............Trulli would end his career this season

Speaking as a selfish American, I'm kind of glad Trulli is going to hang on for another year. Word is that Lotus (soon Caterham) will use Alexander Rossi in some practice sessions next year while driving for their GP2 team. Surely 2012 will be Jarno's last hurrah! Then we'll have somebody that can undo the harm Scott Speed did to our national psyche.

 

[RayInTorontoCanada]

Speaking as a selfish American,...Alexander Rossi ...Then we'll have somebody that can undo the harm Scott Speed did to our national psyche.

How do you rate the young Californian?

Another Dan Gurney in the making?

 

[KekeTheKing]

How do you rate the young Californian?

He had the measure of Ricciardo this year. Definitely the best American prospect in decades.

 

[Galahad]

I wonder whether Bianchi has done enough to retain Ferrari's support going forward. The target this season was the title and he's missed it by quite a margin. The performances picked up over the second half of the season, but still.... He'll have to hope Domenicali is more forgiving than Helmut Marko would be.

Charles Pic would be my driver of the season (including Grosjean) - extremely impressive for a rookie. He'll probably have to wait another year to progress.

If any F1 drives open up for next season, you'd have to think Jean-Eric Vergne or Robert Wickens from Renault World Series would be equally strong as the GP2 contenders.

 

[RayInTorontoCanada]

He had the measure of Ricciardo this year. Definitely the best American prospect in decades.

Excellent. So best American prospect since before Michael Andretti? I guess that would have been Eddie Cheever?

Do you remember when Al Unser Jr was rumoured to test for Benetton?

 

[RasputinLives]

Word is that Lotus (soon Caterham) will use Alexander Rossi in some practice sessions next year while driving for their GP2 team

Worth a bet if all goes well in GP2 for him that he'll make his F1 debut in Austin Texas next year? seems to be how Lotus roll.

 

[landogeorgelewis1]

Luca Flippi is an outside bet for next seasons GP2 title.

If Vietoris and Bird can produce the goods next season i'm convinced that both will make a jump up to F1 in 2013. But then again both could end up following Mike Conway and James Jakes to the US and race in Indy car next season which could spell an end to get into F1 IMHO.

Does anyone know if GP2 Asia is returning this winter? Would be good if it did to keep the racing juices going into next seasons GP2 main series!

 

[Galahad]

No Asia Series any more I'm afraid. They were gradually losing circuits year by year until only Bahrain and Abu Dhabi were left...with the uncertainty in Bahrain they've just tagged the Abu Dhabi round on to the main series.

http://www.gp2series.com/News-Room/News/2011/07_July/GP2-Series-and-GP2-Asia-Series-to-be-merged/

 

[landogeorgelewis1]

Galahad cheers for the link.
Great news in seeing both series been merged, will be good to see next seasons calendar, plus more races for us GP2 fans the better in my mind!

 

[Galahad]

Hmm, maybe. The budgets are high already, though, so don't expect too many long haul races on the calendar.

 

[landogeorgelewis1]

Do you reckon when F1 heads to Canada that GP2 and GP3 will head to Turkey? It's just that it would make sense considering the circuit isn't on the F1 Calendar next season would be a shame if they didn't take a chance to race they once F1 was out of the Middle-east/Europe season.

 

[RasputinLives]

Maybe they could go to Paul Riccard when the F1 circus heads to the U.S too

 

[Kamui-FastestChefInTheWorld]

He had the measure of Ricciardo this year. Definitely the best American prospect in decades.

Could you count Robert Wickens in that? He's Canadian, but North American, I guess.

 

[KekeTheKing]

Could you count Robert Wickens in that? He's Canadian, but North American, I guess.

Typical 'American' arrogance, I know, but when I say 'American', I mean the U.S.

Wickens must surely be the best Canadian prospect since JV though.