The F1 silly season rumours which could shake-up the grid

Mercedes
The level of the driver market drama we see for 2024 will largely be dictated by 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Lewis Hamilton, who is the biggest-name ‘free agent’ on t🤪he grid.
Hamilton potentially leaving Mercedes - and F1 altogether - would send shockwaves throughout the sport and create a domino effect that🦩 would throw the driver market into chaos. But that is not a likelꦬy scenario.
Although the seven-time world champion’s current deal expires at the end of the 2023 season, both driver and team have repeatedly𒉰 reiterated their desire to continue their partnership.
Hamilton has been in negotiations with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff for several months and an agreement is imminent. That is despite rumours of a sensational switch to Ferrari - speculation that was quickly quashed by both s🦩ides.
Wolff recently𓄧 said Hamilton’s cont🍬ract extension was “emotionally” done and just needed signing off.
Both Hamilton and Mercedes have stressed there is no rush for the extension - mooted to be two years - to be finalised. It is considered a formality by both partie🃏s and official confirmation will simply be a matter of tim🍎e.
Charles Leclerc or Lando Norris ꧋are mooted as dream replacements should the unthinkable happen, and Hamilton leaves.
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:George Russell is tied to Mercedes until the end of 2025 after the Silver Arrows 168澳洲幸运5官♔方开奖结果历史:reportedly took up ꦏan option to add an extra year to the Briton’s contract.
Red Bull
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Max Verstappen is sitting on the longest contract in F1 today, until the end of 2028, on m♏ega-money. And why would he want to drive any other car, anyway?
The interest surrounds his teammate 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Sergio Perez whꦗo has a contract for next season but will not feel particularly secure.
The notoriously ruthless Helmut Marko said this week: “There is no reason to think about measures affecting Perez. He still ha🌃s a contract with𝐆 Red Bull for 2024.”
But how many previous R🌳ed Bull drivers heard the same? Standards are hi💞gh at the constructors’ champions and Perez will be feeling the heat to keep his seat.
Daniel Riccౠiardo, inserted into Red Bull’s sister team AlphaTauri by Marko, has made it clear he aspℱires to the car alongside Verstappen.
Watch this space.
Ferrari
Leclerc is routinely linked to Mercedes but more recently was rumoured to be signing a new Ferrari contract that will tie him down until the end of 2026, with the option for three more years🔯.
That repo🐎rt claims the deal is worth £160m and would be the second-longest behind Verstappen’s.
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Carlos Sainz is contracted for next sea🔜son but has been linked with penning a pre-agreement to join the Sauber-run team in 2025, ahead o💟f Audi’s takeover the following year.
Aston Martin
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Fernando Alonso, the 💞oldest driver on the grid at 42, is contracted for one more season at Aston Martin who shot into the podium positions at the start of the year before falling off more recently.
His choicesꦛ about when and where to move are infamous - and have not always produced results - but Aston Martin will expect him to stay for next year.
But 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Lance Stroll? In✅ theory his seat is guaranteed because his dad, Lawrence Str💛oll, is the billionaire who owns the team.
“I just have a little feeling that in about a year and a half’s time, Lance Stroll will race his last race in Formula 1 and go off and do something els❀e”, Sky’s David Croft speculated.
“I just think he’s lo▨sing his mojo. I don’t think Formula 1 was the sport he wanted to go into when he was younger.”

Alpine
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Esteban Ocon and 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Pierre Gasly a📖re tied down for another season at least and nobody expects them to be anywhere else in 2024꧃.
McLaren
Norris has a contract for another tw⭕o-and-a-half years but is constantly rumoured to be heading el꧑sewhere, often to Mercedes or Red Bull.
Amid McLaren’s current upturn in form he has admitted: “In the back of my mind, there’s that impatient game of, ‘do I stick it out for another few years, or is i♐t time to look at something different?’”
Zak Brown ꦿeven addressed his star driver potentially looking for an escape route, claiming McLaren must con꧑tinue giving him a competitive car to have any chance of keeping him.
“I think as long as we keep doing that,🌳 then he'll stick around,” Bro🌳wn said.
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Oscar Piastri has impressed in his rookie year and is tied to M🍨cLaren for 2024.
Alpha Tauri
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Ricciardo’s aim of returning to the F1 grid was unexpectedly fast-tracked after Red Bull reminded the paddock of their ruthlessness by axing the underperforming Nyck de Vries from sister team AlphaTauri just 10♓ races into his rookie campaign.
The Australian has been parachuted in alongside Yuki Tsunoda and is determ🅠ined to use the opportunity to rebuild his reputation and stock as he targets a full-time Red Bull🐈 drive in the future.
A full ꦬseason at the soon-to-be rebranded AlphaTauri next year seems like Ricciardo’s best bet if he wants to position himself for a return to the Red Bull cockpit on a full-time basis.
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Yuki Tsunoda will be hopeful of earning a contract extension with AlphaTauri considering he has been a 𒅌rare bright spark in an otherwise challenging season for the Faenza-based outfit.
The Japanese driver has continued his progress and stepped up as team leader in Gasly’s absence following his move to Alpine. Tsunoda has scored all of AlphaTauri’s points so far with a trio of 10th-place finishes and dominated De Vries prior to the Dutchman’s saᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𝓀ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚcking.
In Ricciardo, he now faces a tougher benchmark and what promises to be 𝔉his sternest test yet. It will also give R𒅌ed Bull a chance to properly evaluate Tsunoda’s mettle, with the 23-year-old holding his own aspirations of a future seat at the parent team.
If Tsunoda can handle the additional pressure and continue to perform well, a ✤new deal will surely 🅠follow.
Alfa Romeo
After a so-so rookie season, 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Zhou Guanyu has vindicated Alfa Romeo’s decision to keep the faith in💫 him with some consistent and solid performances during the fir🔴st half of his sophomore F1 campaign.
Just one point and one place behind teammate Valtteri Bottas in th🧔e championship, Zhou has held his own against his more experienced stablemate in uncompetitive machinery and will feel a contract renewal is a deserving reward.
The Chinese driver hopes to make progress on a new deal over the August break. With the Sauber-run team soon to be taken over by Audi ahead of their entry in 2026, it remains to be seen how much of an influence the German man🔯ufacturer will have on Zhღou’s future.
But with Alfa Romeo team boss Alessandro Alumni Bravi already hinting at an unchanged line-up for next season, it looks as though Zhou and 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Valtteri Bottas’s seats are safe for 2024, at least.
Haas
Since impressing on his full-time F1 return, 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Nico Hulkenberg has been subject to some wild rumours linking him to Aston Martin, and even Red 🌞Bull, though Haas have no pl🐭ans to change their driver-line-up for 2024.
Haas regard Hulkenberg and 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Kevin Magnussen as a solid pairing who provide 🃏some much-needed experience and stabi𒀰lity after the team’s all-rookie line-up of Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher did not work out as planned.
Haas team principal Guenther Steine🐟r indicated that the American outfit are satisfied with their current duo in Canada.
"Driver market-wise, I think 🎐at the m⛎oment we are pretty happy with what we have got," Steiner said.
"Obviously we want to announce our drivers as soon𓆉 as possible so we don't have to hang around like last year, a long time.”🅷
Magnussen does not hold a contract for 2024♔, so his boss’ words may be of little comfort until a new deal isꦜ struck.
Williams
Despite being just one of three drivers yet to score points this season, and looking a bit shaky at times, 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Logan Sargeant is an improvement o🦹n the man he replaced, Nicholas Latifi.
However, he does not have a ♛guaranteed contract for next year.
A change for 2024 does not look on the cards at this stage and nor would it make much sense. After Williams were so willing to take a chance on their young Ameri😼can driver, it would seem unnecessarily harsh to boot him out after just one year.&🌃nbsp;
Crucially, Sargeant has new Williams team principal James Vowles’ 🎉backing. Volwes admittedꦿ that Sargeant has already proved him wrong for snubbing the 22-year-old in the past when he was at Mercedes.
168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Alex Albon, Williams’ main man, was linkeܫd to a huge move to Ferrari by the Italian media. A sure-fire sign that he is impressing up and down the paddock. He is thought to be tied down to Williams until at least 2024.
Mick🍰 Schumacher, Mercedes’ current reserve driver, is a high-profile name waiting in t𓃲he wings for a full-time comeback in case any openings emerge.
With the driver market looking set to be relatively static for next season, we don’t expect a repeat of a shock announcement akin to Alonso’s🥂 bombshell switch to Aston Martin which rocked last summer.
There could, however, bꦯe a lot more movement for 2025.

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