Paris: The contrast between these two veterans couldn't have been sharper. While one is probably going to bid farewell to Formula One this weekend, the other is starting his career afresh, securing an extended run as a driver after almost a decade.
The 40-year-old Pedro de la Rosa seems to have revived his racing career by signing a two year contract with HRT while for Rubens Barrichello, who turns 40 this March, this weekend's Brazilian GP could be his last race. The irony is that De la Rosa, despite his 14-year-long career, has managed to start in just 87 races scoring 35 points while Barrichello holds the record for must number of starts (325) in which he has scored 658 points which includes 11 wins.
De la Rosa's career graph has been unique as he made a name for himself more as a test driver than for his racing skills. In 2003, he took up the testing at McLaren. From 2003 to 2009, he performed the bulk of testing duties at McLaren.
In seven years, he got only nine race starts. Last year, he got a slightly longer run when he made 14 race starts with the Sauber F1 team, after which he was replaced by Nick Heidfeld. This year, he raced only once, again as a replacement to the injured Sergio Perez. McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh acknowledged De la Rosa's contribution to the team as a test driver terming it valuable. ''His feedback has been reliable and expert,'' Whitmarsh said.
While De la Rosa will be starting his career anew, Barrichello is hoping his home race doesn't turn out to be his final one. The Brazilian driver has endured one of his worst seasons ever, scoring just four championship points. With reports of Kimi Raikkonen making his F1 comeback in 2012 with Williams, Barrichello faces a tough task to secure a drive next year at the Grove based outfit.
Compared to De la Rosa, Barrichello has had a long racing career. He made his debut in 1993 and was a part of the all-conquering Ferrari team from 2000 to 2005. His best year, however, wasn't with Ferrari where he always had to play second fiddle to Michael Schumacher.
His status in the team was perhaps best exemplified at the infamous 2002 Austrian Grand Prix in which he was asked to slow down so that Schumacher could get ahead of him and win. His best career performance though was with Brawn GP in 2009 when he finished third and was a strong title contender.
While the chances of Barrichello finding a drive for next season look slim, he can draw some inspiration from the fact that a similar scenario existed at the end of 2008. The following year, he roared back with a sensational performance and extended his career. If Barrichello does manage to get a drive in 2012, it would be interesting to see three 40-year-olds race in the same season, the third being Schumacher.
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