Max Chilton may be keen on a second season at Marussia in 2014, but it appears that a list of potential replacements is being drafted by the management of the team as they look for a partner for Jules Bianchi next season.
It was confirmed earlier this month that Bianchi would remain with the Anglo-Russian team in 2014 after an impressive debut season, with his thirteenth-place finish at the Malaysian Grand Prix currently keeping Marussia ahead of closest-rivals Caterham for P10 in the constructors’ championship. Chilton, who was one of five rookies at the beginning of the season, has failed to match his teammate’s pace for much of the season, outqualifying him just twice. However, he expressed to Sporting Life his belief that he deserves a second season with the team.
“I feel I’m showing not just the team, but everyone on the whole, I deserve a seat for next year,” Chilton said. “Everyone gets judged, so you have to prove yourself, which is hard for rookies these days because there is so little testing, which means it’s going to take part of the season to get up to speed.
“I’ve been really happy with my performance, as have the team, and I’ve been really happy with them, so it’s going really well.”
However, sporting director Graeme Lowdon conceded that the team was considering other options including McLaren youngster Kevin Magnussen, who is set to clinch the Formula Renault 3.5 championship this weekend in Spain.
“Like any team that hasn’t confirmed drivers, there are a number of possibilities,” Lowdon explained to Press Association. “Certainly Kevin has impressed in the tests he has done, and as a team that has brought young drivers into Formula One, he is in the frame, but there are probably three or four drivers with good potential looking to get into Formula One, and we’re talking to a number of them, along with other teams.”
Lowdon went on to acknowledge Chilton’s development across the course of the season and admitted that he remains an option for the team.
“Max is definitely an option because on the driving side he is doing a really good job,” Lowdon said. “There has been real progress in a number of areas, and he has formed part of a tightly-knit team.”
Although Magnussen is a highly talented driver and has McLaren’s support, it may be unwise for Marussia to take him on. If they partnered the Dane with Bianchi, it would mean that both drivers are at the team to be nurtured with a view of a full-time race seat at their parent teams (McLaren and Ferrari) in the future. Should Marussia wish to firmly establish their own identity in Formula One, this may not be the best course of action.
