Virgin Racing Formula One driver Jerome d'Ambrosio of Belgium (R) drives ahead of HRT Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan of India during the Turkish F1 Grand Prix at the Istanbul Park circuit in Istanbul May 8, 2011.UMIT BEKTAS
Robert Wickens had a terrible weekend on the track in Monza, Italy, but things away from the tarmac should be looking up this week.
As reported by The Globe and Mail last month, Wickens is in line for a Formula One reserve driver role the Virgin Racing team and insiders in the paddock say that all the obstacles that delayed the deal are now out of the way.
It is expected that Wickens will be named as the team's reserve driver this week, with the distinct possibility that he may be put into the car next weekend at the race in Barcelona, Spain.
Whatever happens at the Spanish Grand Prix, the deal becoming official would go a long way to helping Wickens to forget a terrible weekend at the famed Monza Circuit in Italy where he failed to finish both races in his Formula Renault 3.5 campaign. In the first race, he suffered a clutch failure while leading and then in the second he was spun out of third place by another driver. The series runs two races per weekend.
After leaving Monza without a point, Wickens dropped from first to third in the standings with 71 points. Teammate Jean-Eric Vergne is first with 90, while U.S. driver Alexander Rossi has 73. Drivers get 25 points for a win.
Wickens' backer in the series, Marussia Motors, is thought to be behind the deal with Virgin, which it also sponsors. In the Formula Renault races, Wickens' car and driving suit are replicas of the grand prix team's livery.
It was originally thought that the deal to put Wickens into the reserve role would be finalized by the Turkish Grand Prix a week ago. Indeed, Wickens attended the race as part of the Virgin contingent, but not in any official capacity. Apparently there was some sort of hold-up on the deal but the issue is not known.
As a reserve driver, Wickens would be eligible to drive the car in Friday practice of race weekends, which means he could be in the car during Canadian Grand Prix weekend in Montreal next month. He would also be available to step in to a race situation should one of the team's drivers not be able to compete for whatever reason.
It is thought Wickens would attend all the grand prix, except for the Oct. 9 Japanese Grand Prix which conflicts with the season finale of his Formula Renault schedule.
But with rumours continuing to swirl that the team may soon dump race driver Jérôme d'Ambrosio due to sponsor troubles - it has been reported that his backers have not paid the team for his seat - the young Canadian may well find himself racing in the Spanish Grand Prix.
But that could be a long shot at best since the team's brass has indicated that d'Ambrosio's place with the team is safe, for now.
Speculation mounted about Wickens taking over the seat after d'Ambrosio's manager Eric Boullier, who is also the Renault team boss, told a Belgian newspaper that his driver's place was in jeopardy due to sponsors not meeting their obligations. Boullier has since clarified his comments, insisting that all is well with his driver and the team.
Whether Wickens is in a race seat or only in the role of a reserve driver, fans shouldn't expect him to be anywhere near the top of the timesheets with Virgin, which struggles just to finish two laps down on the leaders at most races.
The team entered F1 last season as one of the three new outfits joining the series, along with HRT, and Lotus-Renault, and has not scored a point.
Whether or not he gets a chance to race for Virgin, Wickens will be back in his Formula Renault car in Monaco later this month on the undercard of the F1 event. The Monte Carlo stop is the only weekend in the Formula Renault season that features only one race.
Another podium for Spengler
Canadian Bruno Spengler extended his points lead in the DTM series after taking a solid second place finish in the race at Zandvoort, Holland.
The Mercedes driver started from pole but could not pull off the win after a miscommunication about pitstops ruined his race and allowed Audi's Mike Rockefeller to take the lead and the chequered flag.
A win and a second in the first two stops in the highly competitive German touring car series season delivered 18 points for Spengler, enough to lead the standings by eight over Rockenfeller and another Audi driver, Martin Tomczyk, who are tied with 10. A pair of two-time DTM champions and Audi drivers, Mattias Ekström and Timo Scheider, is next in the standings with nine.
Spengler has also shown speed in qualifying, taking both poles so far in the 10-race season. The next DTM race goes at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria, which hosted 25 F1 races between 1970 and 2003.
Ottawa driver wins at home
Perry Bortolotti of Ottawa, took home a pair of wins in the first two rounds of the inaugural Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada as the series kicked off its season with a pair of races at the Calabogie track outside Ottawa.
Toronto's Marco Cirone second in both races. The next race weekend is June 3-5 at the ICAR Circuit near Mirabel, Que.