The seats are being filled

Kubica has confirmed he will stay with Renault for 2010, hardly a surprising decision considering the lack of even remotely competitive options available. Decent drivers looking for rides in January have a certain air of desperation about it. Assuming he wanted to stay in F1 Kubica choices was limited to either staying with Renault or start over with one of the new teams.

Assuming Jamie Alguersuari is confirmed for the second Toro Rosso car, and McLaren test driver Pedro de la Rosa gets the final seat at Sauber alongside Kobayashi pickings start to get a little thin for drivers.

a quick glance down the entry list shows there are only one even remotely competitive seat available, the second seat at Renault. With the sale by Renault of their F1 operation to an investment fund there is an element of the unknown attached to the team.

I think Peter Sauber taking over the team from BMW and removing the corporate influence will be good for the team. Sauber has proved in the past he knows how to run and develop a team, and now he is free to run it his way it will hopefully make a difference.

Looking further down the grid at the new teams and there are some significant questions, top of which is US-F1. They have not announced either driver and Bernie Ecclestone has been vocal in his concerns about the team being on the grid in March. Jose-Maria Lopez is supposed to have raised the money required, but nothing formal has been announced.

The other new boys look to be in better shape. Lotus and Virgin have each announced very solid lineups with some accomplished drivers in Trulli, Kovalainen and Glock. If they are given a decent car they should comfortably make the grid. Campos has not announced its second driver and it seems every F2 driver with a decent chunk of sponsorship has been linked to it.

Mclaren

1 – Button

2 – Hamilton

Mercedes

3 – Rosberg

4 – Schumacher

Red Bull

5 – Vettel

6 – Webber

Ferrari

7 – Massa

8 – Alonso

Williams

9 – Barrichello

10 – Hulkenberg

Renault

11 – Kubica

12 – TBD

Force India

14 – Sutil

15 – Liuzzi

Toro Rosso

16 – Buemi

17 – TBD (Alguersuari?)

Lotus F1

18 – Trulli

19 – Kovalainen

Campos Meta

20 – TBD

21 – Senna

US F1

22 – TBD (Lopez?)

23 – TBD

Virgin

24 – Glock

25 – Di Grassi

BMW (Sauber)

26 – Kobayashi

27 – TBD (de la Rosa)