Has Rossi Done Enough to Secure F1 Future?

Paul Jeffrey · Nov 16, 2015

Having completed his five race spell driving the number 53 Manor Marussia Formula One car, Alexander Rossi returns to GP2 driving duties with the hope that he has done enough to secure a full time future at the pinnacle of the motor racing ladder, Formula One.

Standing in for fellow Grand Prix rookie Roberto Mehri in Singapore, Japan, the United States, Mexico and Brazil, Rossi will be hoping his stock has increased sufficiently to find himself a berth on the grid come lights out next season, or at very least give himself an opportunity to work with one of the bigger teams on the Grand Prix grid in a third driver/reserve role.

With only drives available at Manor Mercedes next season and with the team already aware of the American's potential behind the wheel of a Formula One machine, Rossi's F1 prospects do look promising going into the winter off season.

Soon-to-depart Manor founder, John Booth, has been suitably impressed with his young charger in his brief Grand Prix career, commenting to press at Interlagos on the positive impression Rossi has made within the team and the contribution to results on track, said Booth,

"I'd like to commend Alexander on five very strong races with us and it has been a pleasure to have him around,".

For his part, Rossi was full of praise and gratitude to the British squad who gave him his (long awaited) debut back in September,

"I would have liked my final Formula 1 round of 2015 to have a better outcome, but I look back at the five races I've had since Japan and I'm pretty happy overall. It's been a totally positive experience and I know I've given it everything I've got. So now we wait and see what the future brings, but I want to thank the team for this incredible opportunity to show what I can do and I hope I've done that."

Rossi has an impressive record against his somewhat underwhelming teammate Will Stevens, with honours falling to the American in both Qualifying (3-2) and the races (4-1). Although Stevens is far from Champion material it stands testament to the talents of Rossi that with minimal driving time in the Manor car he can come into the team late in a season and thoroughly out perform a teammate who has been driving the whole racing season.

Should Manor be successful in its search for a top driver next season (both Kevin Magnussen and Pascal Wehrlein have been linked to a seat in recent months thanks to their affiliation with top teams) it would be interesting to see how Rossi stacks up against sterner competition in the sister car, and would allow fans a better idea if we are looking at the first American driver with the potential to take his talent all the way to the top of the World Championship table, or if he's simply been flattered by Will Stevens' relative lack of speed.

Do you think Alexander Rossi has a chance of retaining his seat at Manor in 2016 or do you think he would be better persuing opportunities at different teams or outside of Formula One altogether? Leave you comments below !

Benutzername · Nov 17, 2015

Of course he has a chance, since the seats are not fixed for next season.

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He did a betetr job than i expected so far. Performing really well

Peter Klawitter · Nov 17, 2015

he did a great job l! outperformed and outdrove his team mate by light years! (not sure why that other driver is in there in that other seat, but guessing he brings $$$$ sponsor money or is well off!)

Brandon Wright · Nov 17, 2015

Unfortunately, in today's F1 the only thing that seems to matter is how much sponsorship money you bring to the table, actual skill/speed in the car comes a distant second (looking at you Pastor). I think Rossi's performance both in F1 and GP2 this year warrants a full-time ride, but it will only happen if he can bring bags of cash with him, sadly. I could see Merc forcing Wehrlein into one of the seats but I'd guess Magnussen would rather go race sports cars than drive a Manor car, so hopefully that will leave one seat open and Rossi will win out over Stevens (again, depending on the size of their respective money bags).

Lorenzo Bonder · Nov 17, 2015

Paul Jeffrey said:
Do you think Alexander Rossi has a chance of retaining his seat at Manor in 2016 or do you think he would be better persuing opportunities at different teams or outside of Formula One altogether? Leave you comments below !

No explanation needed. Yes.

R.J. O'Connell · Nov 17, 2015

F1Fanatic has his form guide of how he fared against Will Stevens. It's actually missing a qualifying victory over Stevens in the USGP, which would bring it to 3-2 in qualifying results, 3-1 in race finishes where both men finished, and dead even in laps led (Stevens spun ahead of Rossi late in the Japanese GP).

Given Rossi's relative lack of experience, given the lack of testing and how most drivers who've come in as mid-season replacements have struggled in recent years, given how Stevens had a huge advantage over Merhi for much of this season - that's not bad at all that he immediately matched and outperformed the guy who's been there since the start. Plus he's super-marketable, brings funding and the potential for more sponsorship, and is well liked by everyone at Manor.

Why wouldn't you bring him back for 2016?

Brandon Wright · Nov 17, 2015

R.J. O'Connell said:
Why wouldn't you bring him back for 2016?

The same reason anybody would put Maldonado in a car, in modern F1 money is more important than talent.

So if someone shows up with more sponsor money than him, he could be out of a seat. Sad that things are this way, but they are.

There's one thing Rossi brings to the table that no other potential Manor drivers bring though; the American broadcast will always interview Rossi after a race, which gets his team and sponsors some very desirable air-time. That's about a half-million eyes on your company name every race that wouldn't have been there otherwise, so in theory that should make sponsors interested. If I were a team/sponsor this would be a very positive asset. I don't recall seeing many (if any) post-race interviews with Manor drivers, but now we've had five of them over the last couple months.

FergalVET · Nov 17, 2015

Yes, I think he has. It's very difficult to notice a drivers abilities when they are consistently 'racing' at the back of the grid, falling 2 or 3 laps down. However, as this article mentions, he has outperformed his teammate who has been driven the car since Australia. There is also a rumour forming of interest in the Manor Team from US investors. I'm sure, if they were to purchase a stake in the team, they would very much like the requirements of an American driver. There are a lot of upcoming Grand Prix drivers, such as Ocon, Gasly, Magnussen(already experienced), and I think his small draft of experience could work in his favour. It will certainly be an interesting topic over the next few weeks, to see who fills the two cockpits in the Manor garage.n

Rob · Nov 17, 2015

No. From the U.S. Does anyone want him? Can he establish British citizenship? He's about as American as Hamilton is British. Maybe they should just swap nationalities? No, that's even worse. Hmmm.
Even the new American team didn't want him.
Rossi: "Hey, over here, look, I beat Will Stevens!"
When drivers start to matter again in F1 this question will be relevant. Otherwise, I have to go off of personality. That being the case, he's probably perfect for F1.

P.S. - Brandon, please tell me you are kidding about the interviews. I can't take them now. He's like listening to some fake NASCAR guy talk about the "Tide-Exxon-Mobil One-Chvy-Sprint Car-Roush-#11-Machine" doing well. lol. He's got the PR part down for sure, but Mr. Wright, I need to stay awake during these broadcasts, don't you see. NBCSN only has one guy (we miss you Peter Windsor) at the race anyway.

Deleted member 130869 · Nov 17, 2015

In the crappy teams skill doesn't seem to matter these days. They finish bottom 2 regardless, what's the point of a team choosing to receive less sponsorship money instead of pursuing a gifted talent? the only exception would be signing a proper talent and making more money from selling his contract to a bigger team.