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Bruno Senna might have been preparing for next week's British Grand Prix as Jenson Button's Brawn GP team-mate had things panned out differently.

Instead the Brazilian will be making his Le Mans 24 Hours sportscar debut this weekend, with F1 very much on his mind.

The 25-year-old nephew of the late triple world champion Ayrton told Reuters that he felt he had every chance of racing against championship leader Button next year at least.

"I have been talking to a few people, there are good chances in Formula One I think next year," he said at La Sarthe circuit.

"The market is going to be a bit more open, there are some contracts that are ending, some teams that are interested in joining Formula One. It should be a bit more stable than it was this year really."

Senna finished last season as runner-up in the GP2 support series and tested with Honda as the leading candidate to replace veteran compatriot Rubens Barrichello at the Japanese team.

There were reports that he had already signed a contract, something he denies was the case, but everything fell apart when Honda announced in December that they were pulling out.

When Ross Brawn led a management buyout, it was Barrichello who got the nod as team-mate to Button, who has won six of the first seven races.

"I would love to be driving that car," said Senna. "I think it's very easy to think if I were driving that car I would be fighting with Jenson for the race wins and everything but I have to remind myself that Rubens is a very good driver, he has experience and it's not easy to win a grand prix."

Senna said he was determined not to be left out in the cold again, although a standoff between the existing teams and governing FIA made it hard to see where the sport was heading.

The entry list is due to be published on Friday.

"I don't think anyone is confident that they are talking to the right people," he said. "No one knows who is going to be in, and who isn't or whether there is going to be a Formula One as it currently stands.

"We have broadened our chances... we are speaking to more than two teams.

"I think we have a good chance with teams that want to enter Formula One and we have some good interest from teams that are currently in Formula One," he added.

"There is a risk of talking to the wrong teams but at the same time there is a risk of being inside a Formula One team that may not be there next year so it's a difficult situation for me and everybody else."

The Brazilian will be racing at Le Mans with the Oreca team, whose main aim will be to finish and get as close as possible to diesel-engined favourites Audi and Peugeot.

"It's a great programme because I am learning a lot of different stuff. Technically it's been great for me," said Senna.

"I am still essentially a sprint race driver," he added. "I haven't got yet the same pleasure driving an endurance race as I do in a sprint race where I can push and need to be on the limit and I know that every tenth counts.

"I probably need to mature more as a driver to really find the true enjoyment that you can find in an endurance race but for sure it teaches me a lot about saving the car, about strategy.

"I think next year in F1 there will be no refuelling so I guess knowing how to save fuel without losing too much time is going to be a good asset for a driver.

"If I had the chance in Formula One next year I could be one of the most versatile drivers on the grid."

Reuters