Prohibative costs and experienced drivers: My frustrations with GP2

For the 2010 season the organisers behind the highly-successful GP2 Series created a feeder series of its own, the GP3 Series. Esteban Gutierrez was the dominant first champion, and his ART team duly promoted him to its GP2 squad for 2011. However, only one other driver joined him in making the step up from GP3 to GP2. That was Norwegian Pal Varhaug, who had finished a lowly 13th overall in GP3. Rather unsurprisingly Pal stuggled in his debut GP2 season. Despite being teammate to eventual champion Romain Grosjean at DAMS, he failed to score any points.

So what happened to everybody else who finished between positions 1 and 13 in GP3 last year? Why did they not make the move? Okay, one driver did, Stefano Coletti, but he had raced in GP2 in 2009 and his main campaign last year was in Formula Renault 3.5 and not GP3, so I'm not counting him.

Nico Muller, who was third overall, and Rio Haryanto, fifth overall, had both had surprisingly strong seasons fresh out of Swiss Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula BMW Pacific respectively. With their relative lack of experience they quite rightly decided another year in GP3 wouldn't go amiss.

Runner-up Robert Wickens didn't have the budget to do GP2, so moved to FR3.5 instead where he is leading the championship with two rounds to go. He was joined there by fellow North American Alexander Rossi, who was fourth in GP3. He didn't have the budget to do GP2 either.

And there is where GP2 is failing some of the world's most promising drivers. I don't know the exact figure but a season of GP2 is said to cost up to €1.9 million. A season of GP3 on the other hand costs only a quarter of that figure, at €500k.

Wickens tested for iSport last November, but couldn't afford a race drive. Photo: GP2 Media Service

This year GP3 benefited from a stronger grid for its second season, with the likes of Valtteri Bottas, Alexander Sims, Antonio Felix da Costa and James Calado joining from Formula 3. Muller and Haryanto may have expected to fight for the title in their second seasons, but the increased level of competition made that impossible, and both failed to match their championship positions from last year.

Looking to next year, many of the top GP3 drivers look ready to step up to GP2. Bottas, Calado, Nigel Melker, Muller, Adrian Quaife-Hobbs, Sims and Haryanto have all proven themselves at this level with good seasons. All of them will look to GP2, but how many will actually make it? Put yourself in the shoes of one of their backers for a minute. The driver has just asked you to increase your funding from €500k to €1.9 million for 2012. Why on earth should you?

GP2 boss Bruno Michel said this week they would control costs as the series looks to race out of Europe next year. How about cutting the cost of running the car? Surely it doesn't need to be that expensive? Formula Renault 3.5 manages with a cost of €850k a year, for a car that isn't much slower.

Many of GP3's leading contenders are ready for GP2. But how many will make it next year? Photo: GP3 Media Service

Furthermore, not only do these drivers need to secure the budget, they also need to secure a seat up against a number of drivers with experience in the category...


GP2 this year had a number of drivers who have not shown much potential down the years yet continue to get seats year-upon-year in the championship. That is thanks to having both secure funding in place and plenty of experience at this level.

Experience was an important factor for the 13 GP2 squads this year, with the introduction of a new chassis. Many teams felt that rather than go with a talented rookie, an experienced driver would be a better option to help them get to grips with the new car. This allowed well-backed drivers like Johnny Cecotto, Michael Herck and Rodolfo Gonzalez to get seats. Combined that trio scored a total of one solitary point this year. Their respective teams weren't to blame for the non-scoring either. Herck's teammate at Coloni from mid-season onwards, Luca Filippi, ended up second overall. Gonzalez's teammate at Trident Stefano Coletti scored two sprint race wins. Cecotto was joined at Ocean by Brendon Hartley from Spa onwards, and the Kiwi promptly scored the team's first points of 2011.

Cecotto and Gonzalez. Both have Venezuelan dollars, but unlike Maldonado they haven't shown much talent. Photo: GP2 Media Service

I worry that the talented crop of drivers racing at the front in GP3 this year will miss out on seats in GP2 for 2012, losing out to drivers like Cecotto, Herck and Gonzalez. There are a number of other drivers too who have had their time in GP2 and need to give up their seat to someone new. Dani Clos, Davide Valsecchi, Luiz Razia, Fairuz Fauzy have all had several years at his level but haven't shown the ability levels of second-year drivers like Jules Bianchi, Charles Pic, Sam Bird and Christian Vietoris. Those four are all ready for F1, but the lack of seats mean they could well return for third years in GP2. But the difference with them is they have shown they deserve a chance at this level and higher. Clos, Valsecchi and Razia have all had long enough to show they deserve an F1 chance but haven't impressed enough. It's time for them to give up and try something else.


With a year's experience with the GP2/11 car under their belt, the teams really do not need to go for experience over talent this year. Just give some rookies a chance, will you?