FIA publishes 2012 entry list

Not all the drivers that finished 2011 will start 2012 © Getty Images

Enlarge

The FIA has released the official entry list for the 2012 season, although unsurprisingly there are a few blank spaces.

Nine seats are still open according to the official list, even though some contracts have been announced by the teams. Force India, Toro Rosso, Williams and HRT yet to confirm either driver according to the FIA, and Renault named just Kimi Raikkonen and not Vitaly Petrov. What's more, HRT's engine supplier was listed under 'To Be Confirmed'.

Another point of note is that Jenson Button will drive the No.3 McLaren and Lewis Hamilton the No.4, which is in line with their finishing positions in this year's championship.

2012 FIA Formula One World Championship Entry List

No.	Driver	Team	Constructor
1 2	Sebastian VETTEL (DEU) Mark WEBBER (AUS)	RED BULL RACING (AUT)	Red Bull Racing Renault
3 4	Jenson BUTTON (GBR) Lewis HAMILTON (GBR)	VODAFONE MCLAREN MERCEDES (GBR)	McLaren Mercedes
5 6	Fernando ALONSO (ESP) Felipe MASSA (BRA)	SCUDERIA FERRARI (ITA)	Ferrari
7 8	Michael SCHUMACHER (DEU) Nico ROSBERG (DEU)	MERCEDES GP PETRONAS F1 TEAM (DEU)	Mercedes
9 10	Kimi RAIKKONEN (FIN) TBA	LOTUS F1 TEAM (GBR)	Lotus Renault
11 12	TBA TBA	SAHARA FORCE INDIA F1 TEAM (IND)	Force India Mercedes
14 15	Kamui KOBAYASHI (JPN) Sergio PEREZ MENDOZA (MEX)	SAUBER F1 TEAM (CHE)	Sauber Ferrari
16 17	TBA TBA	SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO (ITA)	STR Ferrari
18 19	TBA Pastor Maldonado	AT&T WILLIAMS (GBR)	Williams Renault
20 21	Heikki KOVALAINEN (FIN) Jarno TRULLI (ITA)	TEAM CATERHAM (MAL)	Caterham Renault
22 23	TBA TBA	HRT F1 TEAM (ESP)	HRT/TBA
24 25	Timo GLOCK (DEU) Charles PIC (FRA)	MARUSSIA F1 TEAM (RUS)	Marussia Cosworth

For up-to-date news on each team's 2012 line-up;

Red Bull

Sebastian Vettel
Mark Webber

There will be no change at the top team after Webber signed a new one-year contract at the Belgian Grand Prix. Vettel is tied to Red Bull until 2014.

McLaren

Jenson Button
Lewis Hamilton

Button recently signed a three-year contract with the team after settling in nicely over the past two seasons. Hamilton has hinted that he will extend his contract beyond 2012 next year.

Ferrari

Fernando Alonso
Felipe Massa

Alonso is tied to the team until 2016 but Massa will need to prove himself in 2012 to see his stay extended into 2013.

Mercedes

Nico Rosberg
Michael Schumacher

Rosberg signed a new multi-year deal in Abu Dhabi to extend his contract beyond 2013. Schumacher will be on the final season of his three-year contract in 2012, but the team is willing re-sign the seven-time champion if the circumstances are right.

Renault announcing Kimi Raikkonen for 2012 came as a bit of a shock to the driver market © Lotus Renault GP

Enlarge

Renault

Kimi Raikkonen
Vitaly Petrov (Unconfirmed on official FIA list) 

Raikkonen grabbed the headlines by agreeing to a two-year deal with the team after the Brazilian Grand Prix. Petrov has a contract for 2012 but both the team and his management have indicated he might be moving on and he was not confirmed on the official FIA entry list. A decision is expected by December 10 with Romain Grosjean and Bruno Senna both eager to fill his space. The situation is made more complicated by Robert Kubica, who is still recovering from his rallying accident and is now out of contract. Renault has said it will do everything to help Kubica return to F1, but has ruled him out of the start of 2012.

Force India

TBA
TBA

Team principal Vijay Mallya is still struggling to fit three into two, with Adrian Sutil, Paul di Resta and Nico Hulkenberg to choose from. Rumours suggest the team has settled on di Resta and Hulkenberg, but Sutil's strong performances this year have complicated matters. It has been reported that Force India is waiting for Sutil to sure up his 2012 plans before an announcement is made.

Sauber

Kamui Kobayashi
Sergio Perez

Sauber announced it would be sticking with its 2011 driver line-up back in July. The team took up an option on Kobayashi to stay for at least another year while Perez already had a multi-year deal in place.

Toro Rosso

TBA
TBA

Jaime Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi both did solid jobs in 2011 but it is still unclear whether it was enough to secure their drives for 2012. They face stiff competition from Red Bull-backed drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne, and each week brings fresh speculation. The latest rumour is that Alguersuari and Buemi will hold their positions with Vergne as test driver and Ricciardo slotting in at another team.

Rubens Barrichello faces tough competition for his seat in 2012 © Getty Images

Enlarge

Williams

Pastor Maldonado (Unconfirmed on official FIA list)
TBC

Maldonado did not feature on the FIA's official entry list, but has since been announced as one of the race drivers for the team. The other seat is anybody's guess, with 2011 driver Rubens Barrichello fighting hard to stay and Adrian Sutil strongly linked to the drive. Test driver Vatteri Bottas impressed during his recent run at the Young Driver Test, but there would be a serious lack of F1 experience if he lined up alongside Maldonado and a season in GP2 is more likely.

Lotus

Heikki Kovalainen
Jarno Trulli

Kovalainen has been linked to a drive at Renault but says he will honour his current contract until the end of 2012. The second seat is less straightforward however, as Trulli extended his contract by one year in September, but in recent weeks Red Bull-backed Daniel Ricciardo has been linked to the seat. The team is remaining tight lipped on the issue but has not moved to deny the rumours.

HRT

Pedro de la Rosa (Unconfirmed on official FIA list)
TBC

The news that de la Rosa will drive for HRT in 2012 came as a surprise, but it does satisfy the team's desire to have a Spanish driver in one of its cars. Bizarrely he was not confirmed on the official FIA entry list even though he has been announced as a driver by the team. Tonio Liuzzi is adamant he has a contract for 2012, but before the final race CEO Saul Ruiz de Marco said he would not confirm the team's second driver until after the season. Liuzzi does not fit with the team's tradition of opting for at least one pay driver so he might find himself under threat from someone with more cash. Spaniard Dani Clos has been linked to the seat after he tested for the team in Abu Dhabi, while Czech driver Jan Charouz bought his way into the Young Driver Test and a Friday drive in Brazil. Daniel Ricciardo looks unlikely to stay after half a season at the team with Red Bull's backing.

Virgin

Timo Glock
Charles Pic

Just hours after the Brazilian Grand Prix, Virgin announced Pic would replace Jerome d'Ambrosio next year. Glock has a contract for another year but is believed to have a break clause if a big team comes knocking.

ESPNF1