McLaren have ended speculation about Heikki Kovalainen's future by confirming he will race for the team alongside Lewis Hamilton in 2009.

The Finn, 26, has collected 28 points so far in his debut season for McLaren but the team believe he can progress.

"He is a brilliant young racing driver," McLaren chief executive Martin Whitmarsh said.

"But there's no magic in Formula One and we still need to work with Heikki to extract his full potential."

Kovalainen joined McLaren from Renault for the beginning of the 2007 season with Fernando Alonso moving in the opposite direction.


BBC Sport Report...


Good. I agree he is a good driver. He works hard for what hes got, unlike Alonso who expects everything to go for him. He deserevs the seat in a Good team. Hpefully hell be a bit more competitive rest of this year, and in the future


[Linked Image]

------------------------------------------------------------