Oct.4 (GMM) Heikki Kovalainen could retain his McLaren seat in 2010, team boss Martin Whitmarsh admitted to reporters in the Suzuka paddock.
The British team has been contemplating a new teammate for Lewis Hamilton, and in recent days the link with a return to McLaren for Kimi Raikkonen has strengthened.Whitmarsh said in Japan that the current Ferrari driver is one option for 2010, but insisted that McLaren's current Finn is not yet out of the running."We are not waiting for Kimi," the Briton said."There's a very good possibility that Heikki will be driving for the team again next year."Hamilton, managed by his father Anthony, has suggested publicly on a number of occasions that he would like to keep Kovalainen as his teammate.Whitmarsh admitted there is a chance the Briton will still have the same teammate at the start of the 2010 season, but only if Kovalainen can immediately up his game."I don't sense that we need to make a decision in the next week, two weeks, three weeks, even beyond that," he said."I think the right and courteous thing to our current drivers is to support them and see if we do a good job and get some results in these last few races."
