Christijan Albers back in Formula One?

Christijan Albers and Hispania Racing

Formula One's annual game of musical chairs is nearly over as there is now only one vacant seat available on the 2011 grid. Hispania Racing is yet to confirm who will partner Narain Karthikeyan in the team and have said they will take their time ensuring they make the right decision.

Whoever gets the final 2011 Grand Prix drive with HRT must be content to race for the least competitive team in Formula One and part with a lot of sponsorship cash for the privilege.

Christijan Albers could be just the man.

Narain Karthikeyan’s appointment at HRT was a big surprise. The Indian driver has been out of Formula One since 2005 and has done little to warrant a return, especially after spending last year in the NASCAR Truck series.

Crucially, Karthikeyan drove for current HRT boss, Colin Kolles, in the 2009 Le Mans Series. It would now appear that connection may have gone a long way towards securing his new deal with Hispania. If so, this could be good news for Christijan Albers who was Karthikeyan’s co-driver at the Kolles Racing Team.

Albers has a long history with Kolles thanks his time at Midland and Spyker, and continued racing for the HRT boss at Le Mans last year. The 31 year old Dutchman has sponsorship from his homeland and fared better in Formula One than many other pay drivers, so could be in line for an unexpected Grand Prix return.

Christijan Albers made his Formula One debut in 2005 with Minardi. He moved to Midland the following year and stayed with the team when it became Spyker in 2007. Ignoring the farcical US Grand Prix that was boycott by Michelin teams, Albers scored his best Formula One result in the wet Hungarian Grand Prix in 2006 where he finished tenth. He was dropped by Spyker midway through the 2007 season, and has since focussed largely on sportscars.

Colin Kolles might be interested in moving Albers from his sportscar team into Hispania Racing, but he also has other more suitable options available.

Vitantonio Luizzi is a hot candidate for the HRT drive since he is competitive, available, and may even have the seat paid for him by Force India. Tonio may not be the quickest driver in the sport but he is still very talented and now has some experience that could benefit the small HRT outfit.

Christian Klien and Sakon Yamamoto are also contenders for the seat, and were brought into HRT last year to boost the team’s sponsorship profile. Hispania would benefit from some continuity so may re-sign one of last year’s drivers who can provide feedback on the new car and act as a benchmark for Karthikeyan.

Ultimately it’s a question of money, and the HRT position could go to almost any driver with a Formula One Superlicence and wealthy sponsor.

Albers is a long shot for the drive, but then so was Karthikeyan.

Posted by Martin Porter. - Follow him on twitter @mpondaweb.

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