Esteban Gutierrez Can Return to Formula 1 Grid After Joining Ferrari as Reserve

Unlike his team-mate, Adrian Sutil, Esteban Gutierrez seemed comfortable when it became clear that he would not be retained by Sauber for 2015.

While a disgruntled Sutil, facing the end of his career, told ESPN F1 of his desire to receive clarification for the team's decision to drop him—and Giedo van der Garde, Sauber's 2014 reserve driver, informed GPUpdate.net of his shock at being denied a full-time race seat—Gutierrez was, curiously, at ease with his situation.

Despite his Formula One career hitting a brick wall at the age of just 23, the Mexican told NBC Sports' Luke Smith ahead of the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix:

"

I’ve been working on other things.

As I’ve said before, it’s a risky direction, but I think it could be a good one for the future. Still not guaranteed, still working on it, so hopefully that comes off soon, and we can share this with you guys.

I have my goals in Formula 1, but I’m willing to do anything that is possible or impossible to achieve my dreams.

I’m looking for a reserve/test driver [role] in a top team, with a plan for the future. An option that I have includes [Friday practice runs] and some other interesting things, so I hope I can share those with you soon.

I’m working on it. I can be quite sure that you will see me around here.

"

The smart money was on Gutierrez appearing at Lotus, a team of race- and championship-winning pedigree, and one that would be in need of the sponsorship funds that helped secure his employment with Sauber from 2013.

As the reserve driver at the Enstone-based team, Gutierrez, it was thought, would receive the practice appearances he craved and would be in a prime position to gain promotion to a race seat whenever Romain Grosjean or Pastor Maldonado moved on.

Yet the 2010 GP3 champion had even bigger plans up his sleeve.

F1 took a collective gasp of astonishment on Monday when Gutierrez was confirmed as the test and reserve driver for Ferrari.

For someone who recorded just one points finish in almost 40 grand prix starts, Gutierrez joining the most iconic and successful institution in the sport's history is, at face value, a case of a driver landing on his feet.

And although there is more than a hint that Gutierrez's signing has been based around commercial reasons—F1 journalist Joe Saward notes that the Prancing Horse are also hoping to raise their profile in Mexico, while Ferrari have announced sponsorship agreements with the driver's backers—joining the team will give the youngster the opportunity to restart his career.

Gutierrez, after all, was unable to impress the wider world behind the wheel of a Sauber, having had the misfortune of joining the team just as the Swiss outfit began to regress from podium contenders to backmarkers.

After securing four podiums with Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi in 2012, Sauber, per Formula1.com, scored points in just 10 races in 2013.

Finding himself alongside a driver of Nico Hulkenberg's calibre in his rookie season, Gutierrez was up against it from the very start, with the German's stock at its peak following his challenge for victory in the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix.

Clive Mason/Getty Images

Although he was comprehensively beaten by Hulkenberg, scoring 45 fewer points than his team-mate, Gutierrez's upturn in form in the latter stages of 2013—culminating in a seventh-place finish at Suzuka—highlighted that he was more than capable of leading a team if handed adequate machinery.

Any solace that he took from his gradual improvement across 2013, however, soon evaporated, with his make-or-break 2014 season coinciding with the arrival of Sauber's worst-ever F1 car, which failed to score a single point in 19 races.

Drew Gibson/Getty Images

Despite failing to make waves at Sauber and making a number of notable on-track errors along the way—a race-ending mistake while running in eighth at this year's Monaco Grand Prix was a sackable offence in itself—Gutierrez, rather tellingly, has retained the support of the cognoscenti.

Rob Wilson, the esteemed driving coach, told The Racer's Edge YouTube channel that his client is a "very, very quick" and "gifted" driver, likening his Sauber struggles to the predicament faced by Valtteri Bottas in 2013.

Bottas, like Gutierrez, made his debut in an uncompetitive car and faced questions regarding his true potential. However, six podium finishes in 2014 as the Williams team mounted a resurgence saw the Finnish driver hailed as a future star.

Wilson, who has worked with the likes of Kimi Raikkonen and David Coulthard, also paid tribute to Gutierrez's dedication, stating that the Mexican is "constantly working on his craft."

A willingness to learn will pay dividends for the 23-year-old at Ferrari, where he will observe firsthand the contrasting approaches of two modern greats in Raikkonen, the easy-going superstar, and Sebastian Vettel, the man committed to recreating the dominant spell of Michael Schumacher.

His presence in such an environment, and his direct association with the Ferrari name should—despite the team's statement implying that the Mexican will be carrying out his work in the simulator, not on-track—stand Gutierrez in good stead for a return to the grid in the coming years.

Although a return to Sauber, should their experiment with Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr go horribly wrong, cannot be ruled out, it is plausible—even at this early stage—that Gutierrez will represent Gene Haas's new team in 2016.

In September, Haas F1 announced that they had established a technical partnership with Ferrari, which would potentially make them the second Ferrari-affiliated team in the 2016 paddock, with the Prancing Horse bound to have at least some influence over driver choices.

Andrew Hone/Getty Images

Leading a brand-new outfit may, admittedly, see Gutierrez head in the same direction as Timo Glock and Heikki Kovalainen—whose talents were wasted as their careers fizzled out at Marussia and Caterham, respectively—but the Mexican deserves another chance to prove his worth in Formula One.

Free from the Sauber nightmare, a backseat role at Ferrari could prove to be a masterstroke.

It's no wonder Gutierrez looked so pleased for himself in Abu Dhabi.