Wednesday 23 July at 14:57 : Without giving too much away, Toro Rosso co-owner Gerhard Berger has suggested Sebastien Bourdais' race seat is safe for 2009.

Bourdais, the 29-year-old multiple Champ Car champion, has struggled during his rookie formula one season this year, particularly since the new STR3 car arrived.

However, he told the French news agency AFP this week that the fact his on-form teammate Sebastian Vettel is moving up to Red Bull Racing next year is "mostly a good thing for me".

"The team will probably not want to change both its drivers at once," the French explained.

It has been suggested that Faenza based Toro Rosso could use the Vettel departure to install an all-new driver lineup in 2009 -- perhaps rookies Bruno Senna and Sebastien Buemi.

"I would rather have a mixture of a young driver with an experienced one," Berger is quoted as countering to sportnet.