Japanese driver returning to cockpit at Monza after being replaced at Spa-Francorchamps; Roberto Merhi took over car of Practice One; budget remains a stumbling block for 27-year-old
Friday 5 September 2014 12:32, UK
A disgruntled Kamui Kobayashi admits he has no idea what is going on at Caterham and how much longer he will remain in the car.
The Japanese driver was replaced by Andre Lotterer for the Belgian Grand Prix two weeks ago and Roberto Merhi was at the wheel of the CT05 for the opening practice session at Monza on Friday morning.
Kobayashi will return to the cockpit for the remainder of the weekend, but paddock rumour suggests Merhi would have stayed in the car had the 23-year-old Spaniard obtained the required super licence.
When asked by Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz what is going on at Caterham, Kobayashi’s response was telling: “I have the same question for the boss, but this is the situation right now.
“I missed the race at Spa, I came back finally at Monza, but we don’t know still. I’ll try to race for the rest of the season, for this weekend I am here to race so I will try to focus and I need to be confident and I think we have some updates since I’ve last been in.”
The 27-year-old added that he has a deal with Caterham until the end of the season, but he feels that contracts are now meaningless in F1.
“I have a contract until the end of the season, but as ever Formula 1 has never worked with contract; if we believe everything in contract this is quite fake and this is the world we know with this business,” he said. “I think the situation is not really nice, but this if Formula 1.”
Kobayashi’s focus is now on ensuring he has a race drive for his home race at Suzuka on October 5, but admits it is a race against time.
“I think with any solution I need to race at Suzuka and I will try even though this has happened, but I cannot give up until the event,” he stressed.
“It is three days which is not a lot and it is in less than one month which is not a lot so it is quite a rush, so there is a lot of work for myself not on the track, but the rest of the time as well.”
After Kobayashi was dropped by Sauber at the end of the 2012 season fans set up a fund to help him secure a return to F1. However, money is still a stumbling block when it comes to securing a seat at another team.
“There is a lot of rumour, but the issue is budget for me,” he concluded.
“There is not too much to say about these things as it is quite complicated for me. There are a lot of things have happened in Formula 1, at least my contract is still here and that is why I am racing this week. At the moment I don’t want to describe too much.”
