Scott Speed’s future on the formula one grid remained in the balance on Tuesday, despite the Toro Rosso team staging its official pre-season ‘launch’.
Faenza based STR confirmed that Italian Vitantonio Liuzzi would again drive for the Ferrari powered team in 2007 but explained that unspecified ‘contractual’ reasons were behind the absence of a similar renewal for Speed, who is 24.
Team co-owner Gerhard Berger reportedly suggested that a decision about the second seat might be made as late as the days immediately before the Australian grand prix, but said the Californian was on “pole position” to keep it.
Indeed, Speed was conspicuously absent at the Circuit de Catalunya on Tuesday, where Liuzzi met with members of the press in the media centre overlooking the start line.
He is tipped to debut the almost certainly controversial STR2 car later on Tuesday, after Berger did not deny that it has been penned by Adrian Newey.
Amid the ‘customer car’ or ‘car sharing’ saga, Newey is employed by the independent company Red Bull Technologies and also designed Red Bull’s near-identical RB3.
GMMF1
DailyF1News.com
