Neither of Alfa Romeo's current drivers, Kimi Räikkönen or Antonio Giovinazzi, have a contract for 2021. The oldest driver on the grid, 40-year-old Räikkönen is likely headed towards retirement, especially in light of his pointless start to the 2020 season. Antonio Giovinazzi's performances with Alfa Romeo since the start of the 2019 have been solid rather than spectacular, though the only Italian driver on the grid is favored to keep his seat with the team in 2021. That leaves at least one seat open at Alfa Romeo next year, and there's a reasonable expectation that this will go to a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy.
Ferrari's young driver programme has no fewer than five members on the Formula 2 grid this year, but the most likely contenders have to be Callum Ilott, Robert Schwartzman and Mick Schumacher. Ilott is currently leading the championship from Schwartzman, but the son of 7-time World Champion Michael Schumacher is also being groomed for a career in Formula 1. We won't go into recent event surrounding one of Haas's new signings for 2020 for many reasons, but it's safe to say that all eyes will be on the only American team in F1 in 2021. Long-standing drivers Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean both depart the team – Magnussen to IMSA and Grosjean to an uncertain future. It will be an interesting transition for the team, as Grosjean had been a Haas F1 driver for its entire history, leaving a slightly insecure Renault seat to join in 2016. Magnussen followed in 2017 and they have been together ever since.
Jumping into their shoes are new F2 champion Mick Schumacher (son of a certain seven-time champion whose name isn't Hamilton) and Russian Nikita Mazepin. Again we won't go into Mazepin's recent actions off the track, but if he does race for Haas he will be on his best behaviour. It will be interesting to see how he copes in F1, and the atmosphere at Haas has hardly seemed like the calmest to step into over the last few years. Given that the two teams share the same ownership – and have been known to swap drivers around – it makes sense to consider Red Bull and Alpha Tauri's driver prospects together.
At present, the only driver from the Red Bull stable with a confirmed contract for 2021 is star driver Max Verstappen. At the start of the year, the 9-time winner signed a contract that will keep him at Red Bull until the end of 2023. Alexander Albon and Pierre Gasly are also likely to retain a seat for 2021, but in which team? Racing alongside Max Verstappen is clearly a difficult job in a team increasingly centered around the Dutchman; Gasly was out of his depth in the early part of 2019 but has since found excellent form with Toro Rosso/Alpha Tauri.
In contrast, Albon made a positive start for Red Bull in the latter part of the 2019 season but has been struggling in both qualifying and the races this season against Verstappen. It's all the ones on Red Bull's cars this season, as 2021 drivers' title winner Max Verstappen sports the champion's #1 (instead of his usual #33) and Sergio Perez partners him. The pair continue their successful partnership, Mexican racer Perez having been confirmed to stay back in August 2021. The race was red-flagged before any competitive laps could be run, and half-points were awarded in the order that the top three drivers had qualified the day before.
Thus Max Verstappen won, George Russell took an especially triumphant second place, and his future Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton completed the podium in third. Lando Norris stays with McLaren for a third year in 2021 and will be joined by Daniel Ricciardo, who moves from Renault on a 2-year deal. While proven race winner Ricciardo will almost certainly have also been interested in Vettel's vacant seat at Ferrari, a resurgent McLaren presents an opportunity for the proven race winner to shine on his own terms. The youngest driver on the grid, Lando Norris has made a very promising start to his Formula 1 career at McLaren, scoring his maiden podium this year in Austria. Don't be fooled by their jokey exteriors – both Norris and Ricciardo possess a steely resolve to bring McLaren back to the front of the grid in the coming years.
The current driver most in danger of losing his seat in the Red Bull family is probably Daniil Kvyat. The Russian has already been dropped by both Red Bull teams during his F1 career and trails the head-to-head this year against Gasly. Who else is in the frame for Helmut Marko, who oversees Red Bull's driver choices? Engine partner Honda would love to see a Japanese driver in one of their cars and Yuki Tsunoda, currently lying fourth in this year's Formula 2 championship, certainly fits the bill. Marko will also be keeping a close eye on Red Bull junior Jüri Vips, who will be making his Formula 2 debut this weekend in Belgium. Or perhaps Red Bull will break the mould and choose an experienced driver?
Racing Point, which used to be Force India, which used to be Spyker, which used to be Midland, which used to be Jordan, becomes an Aston Martin works team in 2021, marking the company's return to F1 for the first time in 60 years. Naturally both shall be retained to drive the Mercedes-clone RP20 for a second season? Stroll – a talented driver no doubt but also the son of the team's owner and Aston Martin shareholder Lawrence – will remain, but Perez finds himself out of a drive just a week after finally taking his first F1 win.
Instead in comes four-time champion Sebastian Vettel. On the face of it making a step forward , Vettel arrives as a refugee from a relationship that went sour and will be looking to reclaim some of his former lustre – the 53-time race winner only stood on the podium once in 2020. Going into 2021, the team has signed a deal to use a Mercedes power unit after a stint with Renault. The return to Mercedes could prove valuable for McLaren, as the team's previous stint with the German manufacturer resulted in three drivers' championships and a single constructors' championship. No changes at Ferrari for 2022 — and it's easy to understand why.
Charles Leclerc is undoubtedly one of the most talented drivers in the field, as he re-proved with pole laps in Monaco and Azerbaijan this season. He's on a long-term contract that takes him through to the end of 2024 and is a key piece to Ferrari's ambitions of returning to a championship contender. The final seat to be confirmed on the grid belongs to Alfa Romeo. Antonio Giovinazzi currently holds the position alongside Raikkonen, although he is yet to sign a new deal. Will the Italian racing driver retain the place, or will we see someone new in the seat?
Australian Oscar Piastri is leading the F2 Championships and will be looking for a place in F1®. Or will we see new faces in F1®, such as Guanyu Zhou or Nyck de Vries. As a result, the Dutchman, who was on fresher soft tyres, got past the Brit with ease, who had been on used hard compound tyres for several laps.
Verstappen crossed the finish line in the first place to clinch his maiden F1 championship. Following Verstappen's 'controversial' victory, the Mercedes F1 team protested the decisions made by race control. However, they did not find any solace as their protests were rejected and the Red Bull Racing driver was confirmed as the winner of the Abu Dhabi GP and was crowned the 2021 Formula 1 driver champion. Hamilton had looked to be cruising to a record eighth world title with five laps to go. However, the deployment of a safety car following an innocuous crash by Williams' Canadian driver Nicholas Latifi allowed Verstappen to dive into the pits and change his tyres and then catch back up to his rival.
The new AlphaTauri car ran with no problems; the team completing the most laps over the three days of testing. Tsunoda impressed, setting the second-fastest time on the final day – albeit on a qualifying simulation run. Save for a spin on Day 3, Tsunoda looked unphased by the step up to F1 machinery, perhaps helped by extensive running in older-spec cars over the winter. More major records are on offer for Mercedes this year.
As they defend the title for a seventh consecutive year, star driver Hamilton could become the first man to surpass 100 Grand Prix wins. Questions will be raised over Hamilton's one-year contract and whether 2021 will be his final hurrah. If it is, George Russell – who impressed on deputising duties at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix – is in the prime position to replace him.
And if Hamilton remains, could Mercedes opt to replace Bottas with Russell? Transitioned to Ferrari so smoothly after leaving McLaren and beat his highly-rated team-mate in a superb debut season. Stood on the podium four times, including taking P2 behind Verstappen at Monaco, and confirmed himself a driver with the potential to challenge for the world championship if given the machinery to do so. The only driver to finish every single race of the season, with only two finishes outside the points.
Took the first pole position of his career at Sochi and would have secured his maiden victory too if not for the sudden deluge which clipped his wings just a few laps from the end. Scored a second-place finish behind Ricciardo at Monza, qualified high up the grid most weekend and delivered consistent Sunday performances which combined strong pace and composed wheel-to-wheel racing. AlphaTauri is one of the four teams who has no confirmed drivers for the 2022 season, though it has a range of options in both F1 and F2. It's very likely that the current line-up of Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda will retain their seats, but with nothing confirmed , it's still wide open. Fresh from committing to the Concorde Agreement and thus confirming its place in Formula 1 for the next five years, it seems inevitable that Haas will be looking to make changes to its driver lineup in 2021. Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen, who have both been with the American team for the past four seasons, are currently out of contract for 2021.
Of the two, Magnussen has delivered better results during the past few seasons and is more likely to be retained by the team. Should Grosjean be shown the door, who will replace him? The smart money is probably on one of the team's current test and reserve drivers, Pietro Fittipaldi or Louis Delétraz.
Given the team's close association with Ferrari, an aforementioned member of the Ferrari Driver Academy is another possibility. Whoever the team chooses, it's likely that the amount of money/sponsorship brought by a potential driver will be a key deciding factor for the lowest-funded team on the grid. In contrast, 4-time World Champion Vettel will be leaving the team at the end of this year after not being offered a new contract.
Vettel's place will be taken by current McLaren driver Carlos Sainz, who has impressed with a string of solid results of late and been rewarded with an initial 2-year contract at Ferrari. After a dismal start to this season, many insiders are even questioning whether Vettel will see out the year in a team where he is increasingly unhappy. Retirement is clearly an option for a driver who has nothing left to prove, though he may yet find a home elsewhere on the grid in 2021 – see below. Thankfully, the teams should have their driver line-ups all complete by this point, with only Mercedes yet to confirm which pairing will be driving for them in 2021. That's because we're still awaiting news on Lewis Hamilton's expected contract extension at the Silver Arrows – a deal that will put him on course to win a record eighth F1 world title.
With Verstappen only off the podium six times in 2020 and Albon only on it twice Red Bull took the decision to pounce on Perez, who had an extraordinary second half of the 2020 season. Ercedes argued that Masi should have allowed all the lapped cars to unlap themselves rather than just the five in between the two title contenders. Additionally they argued that the safety car should have stayed out for one more lap, meaning the race would have finished under a safety car and Hamilton would have been crowned champion.
Who Are The 20 F1 Drivers For 2021 At long last, all of the pieces have finally fallen into place. First, after his long, record-setting career as a Formula One driver, Kimi Räikkönen announced his retirement from the driver's seat, effective at the end of this, the 2021 Formula One season. In their new blue and yellow livery, Williams put in plenty of laps in testing. The running was split between test driver Roy Nissany, Nicholas Latifi and George Russell, with each having a full day in the car.
While Latifi suffered a major spin and subsequently a tyre delamination, Russell looked most confident in the car. He set the team's fastest lap on the last day of the test. An incompetent driver who is nowhere near talented enough to race in Formula 1.
Out-paced by his team-mate in pretty much every single session of the season, and a regular danger to faster cars when yielding awkwardly under blue flags. Will likely stick around for the foreseeable future thanks to his father's firm's sponsorship of the team, but does not come close to meriting his place. Won at Azerbaijan and made a crucial difference in the drivers' championship when it mattered most at Abu Dhabi.
Drove the wheels off the Alpha Tauri and out-paced his team-mate on 21 out of 22 Saturdays in another extremely strong season. Took a podium in Baku as well as a glut of fifth and sixth-placed finishes elsewhere as he continued to look a driver capable of challenging for wins in a faster car. Lead the team with confidence despite still being only 25 and seemed to have a good influence on Tsunoda's manner as the season went on. Raised his level of performance to probably the highest of his career in the face of the challenge posed by Verstappen and Red Bull, and managed to take eight wins in the most hardly-fought season of a generation.
Verstappen is the driver with the next highest salary. Remember, Verstappen has not won a drivers' championship, he's won 11 races and secured four pole positions. Yet, his racecraft has made him one of the most revered drivers on the grid. Add to it that he's continuously putting in the best performance - just like Hamilton - and you have a driver Red Bull Racing would keep at any cost. Leading the field is Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-AMG), with a reported annual salary of $30 million.
At the end of the 2020 season, Hamilton was reportedly earning around $40m per year, but his new deal (a one-year contract with the option to extend into 2022) saw him take a reduced salary. Despite him being a seven-time champion and rewriting the sport's record books, it wasn't enough to warrant a hefty paycheck. And with Williams driver George Russell waiting in the wings to take over, Hamilton had little choice but to agree to the new deal. Had a stellar first half of the year in terms of results, picking up three podium finishes. While his season trailed off in terms of results, the performance level didn't and he was unfortunate to lose fifth in the drivers' championship.
Canadian2021 formula 1 team/driver line-up – A list of teams and drivers which have been confirmed or are expected to take part in the 2021 F1 season. Fernando Alonso's swansong at Yas Marina in 2018 never really felt like the goodbye it was supposed to be. "Goodbye Fernando, see you when you come back" was the contribution from Sebastian Vettel in Alonso's farewell video. The Spanish star clearly has unfinished business in Formula 1, though whether he will be among the frontrunners again with Renault – the team that gave him two drivers' titles in 2005 and 2006 – is certainly up for debate.
Alonso is reported to have signed a 2-year deal with the French carmaker and will be eagerly awaiting the introduction of new technical regulations in 2022 that are expected to shake up the running order. Alonso will be partnered with Esteban Ocon, the young French driver who returned to the grid this year after a year on the sidelines. While Lando Norris will be sad to see his good friend Carlos Sainz Jr. depart, he will be delighted to see a man who has seemed like his big brother at times join. When not on track Daniel Ricciardo and Norris have gained reputations as light-hearted kids looking to have some fun. Ricciardo famously caused Norris to cry laughing in a press conference last year, so it seems hopeful that the good atmosphere that McLaren boss Andreas Siedl (mastermind of Porsche's mighty 919 programme) has fostered will remain. Whether McLaren can build on two seasons of progress will be seen, but in signing Ricciardo they have a race-winner in the team with a proven track record at pushing teams up the grid.
Ricciardo's switch to Renault may not have yielded the returns he hoped, but he has no doubt managed to push the team forward up the grid. McLaren will hope he can have the same effect in Woking. It's looking like a tricky transition year for Ferrari. With cars carried over to 2021 the lacklustre Ferrari SF1000 shows little sign of moving up the grid.
Charles Leclerc stepped up into the role of lead driver with aplomb in 2020, dragging the sluggish Ferrari to the podium twice and only failing to cross the line in the points six times. He will be joined by a bullish Carlos Sainz Jr. fresh from two years as the defacto team leader at McLaren. The affable Spaniard has shone in his time at McLaren, forming a formidable partnership with young Brit Lando Norris and coming close to taking his first victory when he couldn't quite hunt down Pierre Gasly at Monza.
