Toyota motorsport boss John Howett has said they will give "very serious consideration" to offering Kamui Kobayashi a 2010 race seat.
Japanese driver to be given "very serious consideration"
Toyota motorsport boss John Howett has said they will give "very serious consideration" to offering Kamui Kobayashi a 2010 race seat after another promising display in Abu Dhabi.
Contesting his second grand prix, the 23-year-old Japanese driver finished sixth at the Yas Marina circuit, one place ahead of veteran team-mate Jarno Trulli.
Two weeks earlier, Kobayashi, who is standing in for Timo Glock after the German suffered a cracked vertebra in qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix, finished ninth on his debut.
His F1 bow was a high profile one, however, with Jenson Button struggling to pass the rookie at Interlagos on his way to winning the World Championship.
Indeed, Kobayashi turned the tables on Sunday by overtaking Button shortly after the Briton had emerged from a pit stop.
Fighting spirit
Howett has now said that Kobayshi, a product of Toyota's driver development programme, is "70 to 80 per cent certain" of being given a permanent contract.
"We're very impressed," Howett continued. "What we like is his real fighting spirit. He's not intimidated by anybody, which is very positive."
Asked whether Kobayashi would take one of the Toyota seats, Howett added: "It looks like it.
"We'll have to give it very serious consideration. He's shown very good, strong resolve, so we have to be serious.
"He has come through the Toyota driver programme, which is a very positive reason. He's also Japanese and we're a Japanese team, so there are lots of positives."
Kobayashi would also be cheap in terms of salary, as Howett recognised by describing him as "definitely good value".
The only drawback appears to be the fact that, although Kobayashi was a winner in GP2 Asia, he failed to impress in the European feeder series, with Howett citing that as a reason for any "hesitation".
He added: "We always understood he was very good in terms of racing spirit, as he has shown throughout his career.
"But because the GP2 pace did not look that competitive, you are hesitant about the risk.
"So it's a definite lesson that sometimes we should be braver in our driver choices and not go for a safer, risk-hedged decision."
Career opportunities
Speaking after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Kobayashi himself speculated that his performances could well have saved his career.
Without a budget to race GP2 next season, Kobayashi revealed his only other option was working in his father's sushi restaurant.
"I have no budget, no budget," the Paris-based racer told reporters. "So I cannot drive GP2 next year. I would probably go back to Japan to maybe work with my father in his sushi restaurant.
"It was like that two months ago, seriously. When I was 16 years old I worked there, making sushi."
Both Trulli and Glock are expected to leave the team, the Italian having been linked with a move to the reborn Lotus marque.
Glock has been rumoured to be joining either Renault or another new team, Manor.
Toyota have also expressed an interest in signing Kimi Raikkonen for 2010, although the former World Champion recently described McLaren as his "only option" after leaving Ferrari.
Howett has confirmed a decision will be made on both seats by the end of the month, with nothing likely before November 15, when the team will hold a board meeting to determine their 2010 budget.
