Silly Season 2025: Rollercoaster of Driver Market
11 seats up for the grabs as multiple contracts expire in 2024, the musical chair off the track is ON, who wins and who loses?
In the lead-up to the highly anticipated 2025 Formula 1 season, the paddock buzzes with speculation, negotiations, and strategic manoeuvring as teams vie to secure their ideal line-ups for the championship battle ahead. From Red Bull Racing's dilemma over its second seat to Mercedes' quest for a successor to Lewis Hamilton, the driver market landscape is fraught with intrigue and complexity.
Fernando Alonso’s future is a Question that has been Answered with his multi-year deal with the Aston Martin outfit, which will take him into 2026 - New Regulations and the year when Aston Martin joins hands with Honda for their Power Units.
Mclaren is All Set, Mercedes has Yet to Decide
As the 2025 Formula 1 season approaches, McLaren finds itself in a position of stability with secured driver lineups. Contracts are in place, assuring the team's future endeavours. However, the landscape at Mercedes has undergone a seismic shift following Lewis Hamilton's departure, thrusting the team into the midst of the driver market frenzy.
The team has shown interest in its protege, Andrea Kimi Antonelli. His impressive debut season in Formula 2 presents the team with an opportunity to consider a bold move: fast-tracking the Italian directly into a Formula 1 race seat.
Will Mercedes do something brave and pick up Antonelli?
That’s a million-dollar question in the paddock.
The New Most Coveted Driver
This time Last year Perez had won 2 out of 4 races, performing at an absolute beast level for the Red Bull. Fast forward to this year, his position has been taken by Sainz with one win and 3 podium finishes under his belt. Unlike last year when Perez’s form started to unravel as Max Verstappen’s unprecedented winning run began, this year he cannot afford that.
The Spaniard is currently delivering results week after week, a multiple race winner and a proven all-round frontrunner with several years’ experience at Ferrari - he is top of the list for anyone with a vacancy. With the potential of offers from Red Bull and Audi, he is not likely to drop out of the grid.
In the context of this form, the Ferrari driver is a precious asset in the market. Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko made no secret of this after the Japanese GP:
“Sainz is certainly a name that you have to take into account,” the 80-year-old told Sky Germany.
The Dilemma of RedBull Seat
Max Verstappen inked a substantial six-year contract extension following his championship-winning season with Red Bull, positioning him well till 2028.
However, with the recent off-track drama of the team going on over alleged inappropriate behaviour with a female colleague, media reports earlier claimed that Helmut Marko was being investigated over a connection with the leak of chats between Horner and the employee.
Marko has been associated with the Red Bull Driver Programme since 2005 and is one of the prominent senior figures in the Austrian-based company and shared close relations with Dietrich Mateschitz.
"We agreed on all points," Marko told Sky Germany. "I will continue here. My contract still has three years to run."
These allegations and rumours within the fractured Red Bull camp raised whether Verstappen would stay there if Marko left at the end of his contract.
Upon asking Max what his views on this situation and what impact would this have on his future with the team, he clearly stated:
“…I [Max] find it really important that we keep the key team together because that's how we have performed really well and that's how we will perform really well in the future…"For me, Helmut is a very key factor in that and he has to stay for me, for sure."
Coming to Sergio Perez's contract set to expire at the end of 2024, the pressure is on the Mexican driver to deliver and secure his seat.
The team has allowed current driver Sergio Perez to retain his position despite numerous contenders for the second Red Bull seat, including Alex Albon (potentially from 2026), Carlos Sainz, and Liam Lawson. Therefore, Red Bull is unlikely to rush into a decision.
Ocon or Gasly or Both: What Does Alpine Choose?
Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly's achievements as Formula 1 race winners have undoubtedly enhanced their appeal beyond their current team, Alpine. The team has indicated that discussions are ongoing, suggesting that potential moves or contract extensions are being considered. Ocon hasn't dismissed the possibility of making an early commitment, indicating a willingness to explore his options. As negotiations progress, it will be interesting to see what decisions are made regarding their future in Formula 1.
"The sooner is always the better,” says the Frenchman. “Because this year, more than anything else, there are 15 drivers, so it's going to be chaos out there for sure. And it's a big silly season. So we'll see.”
Ocon’s team-mate Gasly admits that Hamilton’s move has made things more interesting.
“I'm at the end of my contract at the end of the year, and obviously there are conversations ongoing, and that's it. Yeah, I think the situation is pretty clear, but at the moment, I just want to see what this car is capable of, and ultimately my goal is to fight at the front.
Leftover Breadcrumbs for Haas or a Rookie Talent?
Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg's contracts with Haas are set to expire at the end of 2024, with both drivers having their deals extended for an additional year in 2023. Hulkenberg appears likely to depart Haas at the end of 2024, given his impressive performance upon returning to the team - the noise in the media suggests that he might be a candidate for the Audi seat given his German roots. His strong showing has also garnered interest from teams that have enjoyed greater success than Haas in recent years.
At 31, Magnussen still has potential, but he must demonstrate stronger leadership qualities to fill the void if Hulkenberg departs.
Oliver Bearman emerges as a logical contender for the seat alongside Magnussen. The British driver has showcased promise, particularly during free practice sessions for Haas.
After his outing at the Saudi Arabian GP where he replaced Sainz who was out due to surgery for his appendicitis - the chances of landing an F1 drive have increased.
Bearman rose to the challenge after doing just 1 Free Practice in the Ferrari of Sainz. He managed to Qualify 11th narrowly missing Q3, in the Race, he finished P7 and scored 6 points for his debut in F1.
As part of the Ferrari Academy, Haas could also save some costs on the engine again if it gives a spot to a Ferrari junior.
Ricciardo in Danger, Again?
The duo that everyone was looking forward to at the beginning of the season was that of VCARB. The pair having decade-long experience in F1 driver and young driver thriving for greater heights is something that excited everyone especially if the experienced driver is making a comeback into racing.
But since the Sakhir weekend, looks like Tsunoda is outperforming Daniel Ricciardo in every session or practice which has disappointed Marko heavily. Media rumors say that Honey Badger is under pressure to deliver and Marko has made it clear that his current performance cannot continue.
There’s a lot at stake this season for both Yuki and Daniel. Yuki’s qualifying was very good, and Ricciardo has to come up with something soon…At least Tsunoda is very good in qualifying.” bluntly stayed Marko.
The Australian has made clear from the beginning of pre-season that his main interest lies in getting that Red Bull seat. Despite his eagerness to get that seat, with the podium claiming Perez to give him chase for the seat there is also Yuki Tsunoda who is outperforming this very experienced driver in every race, Ricciardo has a lot to improve.
It is also very unrealistic for RBR to keep such an old driver in their junior team for long knowing they have many talents in the F2 worthy of that seat like Liam Lawson who scored points for the team almost every weekend when he replaced Ricciardo in the previous season.
Baby Schumy to retrace Schumi’s Footsteps?
The year 2024 has thrown us a Silly season that could be exciting to watch, Not to forget amidst all the existing F1 and F2 drivers, there is the question of
“Whether Sebastian Vettel will make an F1 Comeback?”
The question that looms in the shadows of this silly season, especially with Vettel’s testing of the Porsche Hypercar and the possibility of Le Mans seat. His fans are hopeful that this test and an Endurance season might be Seb’s way of getting up to speed to return to Formula 1.
However, Vettel himself has been cryptic - neither denying the possibility nor confirming a chance of a return.
Multiple Offers for the Japanese?
The Japanese man has shown immense growth compared to the previous year collecting all 7 points for the team. The driver has become the talk of the market in the initial days of the 2024 season itself.
Despite this, Horner seems to be hesitant about promoting him to Verstappens’s teammate. In contrast, Helmut Marko has been vocal about the youngster’s progress this season. When reviewing the Japanese GP, the Red Bull advisor was full of praise for the RB driver:
“At the second start, Yuki did sensationally well,” Marko wrote on Speedweek.
“His overtaking manoeuvres were the show of the day. The fans were completely over the moon. His weekend was at the level of Max, Alonso and Co.
Regardless of such high performance, the decision for 2025 would not be made until the summer of ‘24, putting him on Audi's radar. As media reports suggest, Sainz and Hulkenberg are the two prominent drivers they are openly considering. However, it does not imply that both the drivers would join the team in 2026 as Sainz might have a more established team vying for him. In such a case, Audi will be aiming for young talented Tsunoda.
This is all for the precursor to the potentially chaotic F1 silly season that lies ahead for the rest of the year. The world awaits to see how it unfolds.
Drivers Line Up for 2025 -
