PlanetF1

Klien: Results should count

Saturday 26-January-2013 09:42

Christian Klien has weighed in on the pay driver debate saying a team's line-up should be dependent upon results.

On Monday, Timo Glock became the latest casualty as he was dropped by Marussia with the team revealing that it was a financial decision.

Glock's place at the backmarker outfit is expected to go to a driver with sponsorship behind him.

The German, though, is not the only one who Klien believes has been given the short end of the stick as Heikki Kovalainen's future is also in the balance as the Finn waits to learn whether he'll be re-signed by Caterham or be replaced by a paying driver.

"It seems a bit of a mess at Caterham, but I think it is because everyone is struggling for money," Klien, who raced for Jaguar and Red Bull, wrote in a column on Pitpass.

"Marussia has shown that in recent days with Timo Glock, who is a very talented guy, losing his drive because of money.

"I think Heikki Kovalainen is the best driver available on the market, followed by Glock, but neither have any money behind him like others seem to.

"Kovalainen is a brilliant qualifier, he used to out-qualify Jarno Trulli who was famous for being a qualifying specialist, and is very consistent.

"A team's decision on drivers should be made on results, and Kovalainen and Glock have good records. If I was in charge I wouldn't hesitate in keeping either of them on for another season."

Caterham and Marussia are not the only two outfits with a seat still available as Force India are still deciding on their second driver.

The race for that seat is believed to be between Jules Bianchi and Adrian Sutil with Klien backing the Frenchman.

"Adrian Sutil seems to be the favourite but that feels like a backwards step. I'd like to see Jules Bianchi given a chance. Ferrari is looking at helping him find a seat in F1 and I think it would be a shame if that doesn't happen because he's a young guy with a lot of potential."