Zoom Game over for now, maybe back on next year

Anyone who saw Sebastien Bourdais walk up to the pitwall and part with a fairly emotional pat on the back from Toro Rosso Technical Director Giorgio Ascanelli following his retirement from the German Grand Prix will not be surprised to hear that the Frenchman has been dropped by the team, it was confirmed today.

Bourdais, who made his move to Formula One after winning four straight Champ Car titles in America, joined Toro Rosso last year alongside Sebastian Vettel and scored two points.

The talented driver spent his maiden F1 season getting used to the new environment, taking more time than had been planned. His best result was seventh place on two occasions but bad luck also marred a few good performances as well.

This year the Frenchman was joined by Swiss rookie Sebastien Buemi and it had been expected that Bourdais would dominate the driver pairing. However - for whatever reason - Bourdais struggled with the STR4 and after 27 Grand Prix starts, the Le Mans-born racer is out of the series.

A short statement issued by the team confirmed that "last weekend's German Grand Prix was Sebastien Bourdais' last race for Scuderia Toro Rosso."

"In Sebastien's second year with us, the partnership has not met our expectations and therefore we have decided to replace him as from the next round of the World Championship, the Hungarian Grand Prix," Team Principal Franz Tost declared.

"An announcement about his replacement will be made shortly before the Hungarian Grand Prix," the statement concluded.

Toro Rosso reserve driver Jaime Alguersuari has been widely rumoured as Bourdais' replacement. The Spaniard is the current British F3 champion and has been competing in the World Series by Renault this year with Carlin Motorsport where the 19-year-old is currently eighth in the standings.

Five-time World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb remains in the Red Bull/Toro Rosso picture however and the Citroen team star could - in theory - compete for Toro Rosso at the season finale in Abu Dhabi following the end of his rallying commitment in this year's WRC season.

As for Sebastien Bourdais, it has not been said that his Formula One career has come to an end: other teams may be interested in his services, including the three new teams entering Formula One in 2010, none of which have confirmed their drivers.

Earl Alexander/Daniel Bastien © CAPSIS International