Toro Rosso driver Jaime Alguersuari has revealed that he very nearly didn't make the Formula One grid in 2010 after a lengthy and protracted contract dispute between his current team and their parent Red Bull Racing squad.
Alguersuari insisted that he would be racing for STR in 2010 throughout the winter, but the team left it until the final few weeks of the pre-season to finally confirm the Spaniard in the seat alongside Sebastien Buemi.
At the time, the delay was believed to be because Toro Rosso were considering dropping him for a pay driver, but the situation actually seems to have been complicated by the team's desire to take control of Alguersuari's F1 contract full-time from Red Bull.
Alguersuari came into Formula One through Red Bull's extensive, but hit-and-miss young driver programme.
"I had a contract with Red Bull and the word of Dietrich Mateschitz. I knew I was a future project for them and that it made no sense for them to make me quickly debut and then leave me out for the next season," Alguersuari explained to Spanish publication Diario Sport this week.
"The only thing about the situation is that Toro Rosso had economic and contractual problems with Red Bull, but I just kept doing my work in a calm way."
The Spaniard has had a far more impressive start to 2010 compared to his half season with the team in 2009, scoring points on two occasions and racing with seven-time champion Michael Schumacher throughout the Australian Grand Prix.
And the experience seems to have boosted Algie's confidence, as he insisted that he was in the mood to fight for a drive with the frontrunning Red Bull team in the future.
"Red Bull has a winning car and I must fight to have one as well," he explained, adding: "I am learning, and if some day I can take the wheel of a Red Bull or win a world championship with them, it would be fantastic."
The Red Bull team was initially rumoured to be dropping Mark Webber for 2011, freeing up a seat in the team, but following Webber's strong recent performances, the odds now seem on the team retaining their current line-up into 2011.
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