Kobayashi link an 'honour' - Lotus chief E-mail
Nov.9 (GMM) A Lotus team official has given no indication as to whether there is substance to reports linking Kamui Kobayashi with a 2010 race seat.

Jarno Trulli, Jacques Villeneuve and Christian Klien have already been linked with the new Malaysian-owned outfit, and after Toyota's departure from F1, the 23-year-old Japanese Kobayashi named Lotus as his preferred plan-B for next year.

Kobayashi impressed while deputising for the injured Timo Glock in Brazil and Abu Dhabi, and had Toyota stayed in F1 he would almost certainly have secured a full time seat.

Lotus F1 chief executive Riad Asmat said he was happy Lotus is considered a strong option by drivers.

"It is quite an honour for us to be seen as such and for drivers such as Kobayashi wanting to be part of the team. This means they see us as a serious team even though we're new," he told the New Straits Times.

 

2010 Calendar

RaceGrand Prix Date
1Bahrain GP 14 March
2Australian GP 28 March
3Malaysian GP 4 April
4Chinese GP 18 April
5Spanish GP 9 May
6Monaco GP 16 May
7Turkish GP 30 May
8Canadian GP 13 June
9European GP 27 June
10British GP11 July
11German GP 25 July
12Hungarian GP 1 August
13Belgian GP 29 August
14Italian GP 12 September
15Singapore GP 26 September
16Japanese GP 3 October
17Korean GP 17 October
18Abu Dhabi GP 31 October
19Brazilian GP 14 November
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DRIVERS
1 Jenson Button89
2Sebastian Vettel75
3 Rubens Barrichello72

Team table

TEAMS
1Brawn GP161
2Red Bull135,5
3McLaren71