‘Silly season’ is a common term in F1 referring to the time of year in which many teams announce their driver line-up for the following season.

It usually takes place during the summer as that’s when the market is at its most frantic, with driver changes causing doubt over the futures of others.

But, silly season started a lot earlier this year due to Lewis Hamilton announcing his move to Ferrari for 2025 back in February 2024.

So the driver market is arguably the craziest it has ever been, especially when many other driver contracts were due, or are due, to expire at the end of this season.

With over half of the 2025 grid now confirmed, who has been announced and what does the future behold for other drivers?

Pierre Gasly, Alpine F1 Team

Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images

Alpine 2025 F1 Drivers

• Pierre Gasly — multi-year contract
• TBC

Alpine endured a difficult start to 2024 as it failed to score any points in the opening five rounds. Although its form then picked up slightly — double points finishes in Canada and Spain for example — Alpine is still currently one of the four worst teams on the grid, highlighting regression for the Enstone squad as it has not finished lower than sixth in the championship since 2016.

Despite that, Pierre Gasly was delighted to sign a multi-year contract extension with Alpine, a team he joined in 2023, as its willingness to offer a long-term deal was understood to be a key factor.

Another factor that’s believed to have influenced his decision is the impending departure of team-mate Esteban Ocon — his childhood rival with whom he shares a fractious relationship. This came to a head at the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix, when Ocon made a risky move down the inside of Portier on the opening lap, which caused the two Frenchmen to collide.

It angered team management and just eight days later, Alpine announced that Ocon will depart the squad at the end of 2024. Although it is understood that the decision was not based entirely on the Monaco incident, it did play some part.

So, this leaves an open spot alongside Gasly, and Autosport exclusively revealed that Alpine has made a bid for Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz, who needs a new team due to Hamilton’s arrival next year. However, Sainz is wanted by several teams and the grand prix winner is keen to take his time in deciding who he wants to join.

If Sainz says ‘no’ to the French squad, then other options may include reserve driver Jack Doohan who competed in F2 last year, Alpine’s World Endurance Championship driver Mick Schumacher who was dropped by Haas at the end of 2022 or Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas.

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Aston Martin 2025 F1 Drivers

• Fernando Alonso — contracted until the end of 2026
• Lance Stroll — contracted until 2025 and beyond

Aston Martin is just one of three teams so far to have announced an unchanged driver line-up for 2025, with that figure expected to go no higher than four constructors. The Silverstone-based squad first confirmed the future of two-time F1 world champion Fernando Alonso, who impressed during his debut season at the team with eight podiums in 2023.

Six of those podiums came in the opening eight rounds though, and Aston Martin has since failed to replicate such form with the fifth-place team now a cut adrift from the top four. This is a long-term project though, one which Alonso is invested in so the 42-year-old signed a two-year extension in April.

Aston Martin then announced in June that Lance Stroll will stay on for 2025, though that was expected given his father Lawrence owns the team. It will be Stroll’s seventh season racing for the squad and his contract length has never been formally disclosed, but that seat is basically his for as long as he and his father want to continue their F1 dream.

Charles Leclerc, Scuderia Ferrari

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

Ferrari 2025 F1 Drivers

• Charles Leclerc — multi-year contract
• Lewis Hamilton — multi-year contract

Ferrari caused a stir when it confirmed the shock news that Hamilton will join the team in 2025. The seven-time world champion has a long history of being linked to Ferrari, but it initially seemed like that would only ever be rumours — especially when Hamilton signed a two-year extension with Mercedes during the 2023 season.

The second year of that deal though was understood to only be an option, which has allowed Hamilton to make the switch just one season into his contract. It means his stint at Mercedes will end after 12 campaigns as Hamilton, whose last championship victory came in 2020, cited a need for a new challenge.

That will come alongside Charles Leclerc, who signed a multi-year contract extension in January with the team he joined in 2019. During that time, Leclerc has won six grands prix and has been Ferrari’s leading driver, but it will be interesting to see how the dynamic changes when Hamilton arrives.

Regardless, the goal is clear: to end Red Bull’s dominance and deliver Ferrari, who finished third in the 2023 constructors’ standings, its first championship-winning season since 2008. With a regulation overhaul coming in 2026, that may present Ferrari its biggest opportunity to do so.

Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team, with his engineers in the garage

Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images

Haas 2025 F1 Drivers

• TBC
• TBC

Haas is the only team yet to confirm either of its 2025 drivers, however it is expected that F2’s Oliver Bearman will fill one of the seats. The 19-year-old is a Ferrari junior who has so far competed in four FP1 sessions for Haas due to the American outfit’s close ties with the Scuderia.

Bearman also raced for Ferrari at the 2024 Saudi Arabian GP due to Sainz having appendicitis, and the Briton impressed by finishing seventh after holding off late charges from Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris.

Who will claim the second seat is a bit more up in the air though, due to current Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg signing with Sauber for the 2025 season. There is also a lot of doubt over Kevin Magnussen’s Haas future, as the 31-year-old has consistently failed to match Hulkenberg’s pace since the German joined in 2023.

This has resulted in Ocon emerging as a leading candidate for that Haas seat and, if it happens, he would become the first grand prix winner to ever drive for the team. Fellow grand prix winner Bottas is believed to be another candidate, as his future is unclear due to Hulkenberg’s switch amid Sauber’s preparations for an Audi takeover in 2026.

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, Oscar Piastri, McLaren MCL38, in the pit lane

Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images

McLaren 2025 F1 Drivers

• Lando Norris — contracted beyond the end of 2026
• Oscar Piastri — contracted until at least the end of 2026

McLaren’s level of improvement since the beginning of last year has been remarkable, as it was sixth after eight rounds in 2023 before mid-season upgrades helped it to finish fourth with nine podiums and a sprint race victory in Qatar.

The British outfit has carried that form into 2024 with a victory in the Miami GP amid a run of seven consecutive podiums, which leaves McLaren as arguably Red Bull’s biggest threat. Both drivers have contributed to McLaren’s form so will remain as team-mates for a third consecutive season in 2025.

Oscar Piastri was the first to commit his future to McLaren, as the 23-year-old signed an extension towards the end of his impressive rookie season with his deal running until at least 2026.

There was a lot more chatter over Norris’ future though, whose previous contract lasted until the end of 2025. Many wondered if McLaren could actually help Norris in challenging for the drivers’ championship, but the Briton has full faith as he signed an extension which lasts beyond 2026.

George Russell, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team, 1st position, on the podium with his trophy and Champagne

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

Mercedes 2025 F1 Drivers

• George Russell — contracted until the end of 2025
• TBC

August 2023 saw Mercedes announce that Hamilton and George Russell had both signed contract extensions which run until the end of 2025. Next season will be Russell’s fourth at Mercedes — the team he joined as a junior in 2017 and clinched his maiden grand prix victory with.

There is a constant discussion over who his next team-mate will be though, given Hamilton’s shock decision to leave. The leading candidate is 17-year-old Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who is regarded as one of the biggest talents in motorsport having already won four single-seater championships.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has also spoken publicly about how much the team believes in its junior driver, but there are still question marks over Antonelli’s readiness to compete at the front given his tender age.

Max Verstappen was another driver to have been linked with the seat, but in the build-up to June’s Austrian GP he confirmed he will remain at Red Bull next season. Regardless, Wolff wants to take his time to decide as Mercedes is more focussed on improving its car, which has won just two grands prix since the Silver Arrows claimed an eighth consecutive constructors’ title in 2021.

Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

RB 2025 F1 Drivers

• Yuki Tsunoda — contracted until the end of 2025
• TBC

Yuki Tsunoda is set to remain at the Faenza-based squad for a fifth consecutive season after signing a contract extension into 2025 with RB. This followed an impressive start to 2024, as the long-term Red Bull and Honda protege consistently beat team-mate Daniel Ricciardo and scored over half of the team’s points tally.

That led to hope amongst some that Tsunoda would finally receive a promotion to Red Bull for next season, but Sergio Perez signing an extension in June despite a run of disappointing results shut that door.

It’s not yet known who will partner Tsunoda in 2025 though, as there is much doubt over Ricciardo’s future given his poor form. That doubt then increased when motorsport advisor Helmut Marko reiterated that RB is a junior team and Ricciardo is anything but an F1 junior given he is 35-years-old.

So, if Ricciardo is not re-signed then the seat will likely go to current reserve driver Liam Lawson, who drove five grands prix for the team in 2023 — then known as AlphaTauri — due to the eight-time grand prix winner breaking his hand at Zandvoort.

Lawson impressed during that run with a points finish in Singapore, leading to Red Bull boss Christian Horner claiming that the New Zealander will be a full-time grand prix driver one day. While that opportunity has not yet come in 2024, there is a strong possibility of it happening in 2025.

Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing, congratulates pole man Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, in Parc Ferme after Qualifying

Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images

Red Bull 2025 F1 Drivers

• Max Verstappen — contracted until the end of 2028
• Sergio Perez — contracted until the end of 2026

Red Bull is another outfit who will retain its driver line-up for 2025 with Verstappen and Perez set for their fifth season as team-mates. The two have enjoyed a very successful period together, as Verstappen looks likely to claim his fourth straight drivers’ title in 2024 while Red Bull is going for its third consecutive constructors’ crown.

That’s despite Perez consistently being under pressure for his poor results, as he scored less than half of Verstappen’s points tally in 2023 while 2024 has not been much better either. Despite that, Horner has publicly stated his faith in Perez on a constant basis and it’s led to him signing an extension which runs until the end of 2026.

There was also some doubt over Verstappen’s future, despite him being contracted until the end of 2028. That doubt emerged during Red Bull’s early 2024 management war — which followed an investigation into Horner’s behaviour towards a female employee — and how Verstappen strongly backed Marko, whose future at the time was unclear.

Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

Sauber 2025 F1 Drivers

• Nico Hulkenberg — multi-year contract
• TBC

Sauber is currently working through major changes, as it is set to become the Audi F1 team from 2026. One of the first things that CEO Andreas Seidl did in preparation for the switch was to sign Hulkenberg on a multi-year contract, the 36-year-old with whom he won the 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours at Porsche.

Although Hulkenberg being German is understood to be one of the factors in Audi wanting him, it also follows a string of impressive performances at Haas in which he has been its leading driver. Sauber is keen to partner Hulkenberg with Sainz in 2025, but the Spaniard is stalling over his decision.

Should Sauber not land its main target, then that could present an opportunity for Bottas to remain with the team he joined in 2022. The 34-year-old is one of many parties waiting on Sainz to decide his next move, before clarifying his own future.

That means it is very unlikely that Zhou Guanyu will contend a fourth season in F1, having failed to impress much during his three-year stint with the Swiss outfit. Regardless of who Hulkenberg’s team-mate is though, wholesale improvements are needed at the team which finished next-to-bottom in the 2023 standings and so far has zero points in 2024.

Alex Albon, Williams Racing

Photo by: Williams

Williams 2025 F1 Drivers

• Alex Albon — multi-year contract
• TBC

Williams is another squad to have made a bid for Sainz, and team boss James Vowles publicly stated that the Spaniard is the British outfit’s number one target. At one stage, the likelihood of Sainz joining Williams seemed quite strong but Alpine’s late bid has since cast doubt over that.

If it isn’t Sainz, then Bottas and Ocon are both options for Williams, as is Antonelli should Mercedes decide he is not yet ready for the Silver Arrows. Williams has a history of fielding Mercedes, the team it gets its engines from, drivers, as Russell joined the squad as a rookie in 2019 before eventually moving to the German manufacturer after three years.

These drivers are all in contention for the seat alongside Alex Albon, who signed a multi-year extension in May as his previous contract was due to expire at the end of 2025. That was a major coup for Williams, as Albon has impressed since joining in 2022 which made him a left-field player in next year’s driver market — but the 28-year-old spoke of his faith in the team’s long-term project, so signed the deal.

While his fate is secure, the future of team-mate Logan Sargeant looks bleak as the 23-year-old has scored just one point since joining F1 at the beginning of last year. He has simply struggled in motorsport’s top category and has not beaten Albon in grand prix qualifying yet, leading to Vowles stating that Sargeant must improve to keep his seat.

Those hoping that Max Verstappen’s challengers would use the three-hour tinkering time between the Austria sprint race and grand prix qualifying to close the gap might feel, to put it lightly, a little downbeat.

A frisson of excitement permeated the Red Bull Ring on Saturday as the field was compressed within 0.798 seconds after Q1, intimating that the battle for pole might be a closely run affair, especially if the teams with an outside shot could find any smoking guns worth a couple of tenths over the short, 10-turn lap.

Instead, the opposite was true. Verstappen and Red Bull spent their time after lunch deciding how to hone up their already razor-sharp RB20, and tightened everything up to squeeze even more out of it over a lap. Case in point: Verstappen’s pair of Q2 laps would have already been good enough for pole had he set them in the final stage, where he found two more that were even quicker.

On lap time alone, the top five on the grid would have been thus: Verstappen, Verstappen, Verstappen, Verstappen, and Norris. Amusingly enough, Verstappen’s time for pole in sprint qualifying on Friday also would have been good enough to start at the front of the grid. That’s the kind of insight you were looking for with your Autosport Plus subscriptions, wasn’t it?

Looking ahead to the grand prix, we’ve got a glut of data to comb through with the earlier sprint and the progression into qualifying. It might be obvious which way the wind is blowing but, seeing as you’ve clicked on this, you might as well go the distance…

Verstappen looks set for glory with 0.4s gap in qualifying

Verstappen set the four fastest times across qualifying and may be tough to catch

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

«Of course, I would like to win by 20 seconds, 30 seconds,» Verstappen said in the press conference after the Austria sprint. «Naturally, you still do the best you can. You’re still optimising your performance. But now that it’s a lot closer, then it requires you to be really on top form.»

Those aspirations of reprising his previously usual plunderings from the front of the grid have been upgraded to ‘quite likely’ given Verstappen’s hefty advantage in qualifying. Extrapolating his 0.4s advantage over Norris across the 71 laps around the Spielberg venue, that equates to 28.4 seconds in hand at the end — which probably fits within the Dutchman’s bracket of an acceptable winning margin.

It’s worth looking at where Verstappen found more than three tenths on his qualifying lap from the sprint; normally, one would consider track evolution but, for comparison, Norris only found 0.06s between qualifying sessions.

Versus Norris’ Q3 time, Verstappen had much more confidence in the rear end of his car and this ensured that he carried about 10kph more through Turn 9 than the McLaren driver

What Red Bull appeared to do was sacrifice a tiny fraction of outright top-end speed for greater traction out of the corners; this ensured that although the car was very slightly slower in the actual mid-corner, the car got up to speed on the straights much more easily. This is a strength that McLaren showed in sprint qualifying on Friday and something that Red Bull has appeared to dial in, but without sacrificing performance in the longer-radius corners.

Verstappen thus collected more time on the straights through the stronger corner exit phases, and experimenting with the throttle in the second and third sectors allowed for the delta over his SQ3 best to grow.

«It was a bit more connected front to rear, and that worked out well,» Verstappen said of his set-up changes. «I think we made the right changes. And then you can see that it’s little things that sometimes can actually make quite a bit of a difference in lap time.»

The only downside was losing perhaps half a tenth either side of Turn 4 versus his sprint pole time, having perhaps killed the speed a little too much through dropping the revs a fraction more. But it was time easily recovered in the next phase of the lap, which contributed to his dominant qualifying display. Versus Norris’ Q3 time, Verstappen had much more confidence in the rear end of his car and this ensured that he carried about 10kph more through Turn 9 than the McLaren driver.

Verstappen’s Red Bull was much punchier on acceleration compared to Norris in the McLaren

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

Pirelli has brought the same tyre compounds as last season, its C3, C4, and C5 compounds, so expect a similar series of two-stop strategies. Verstappen stopped a third time at the end to shake a fastest lap out of a used soft set, such was his margin at the front, and assuming a 0.4-second-per-lap advantage over Norris does suggest that this could very well happen again.

All that, and Verstappen has also saved an extra set of hard tyres for Sunday to give himself a bit more strategic latitude. Draw from that what you will.

Russell reckons he can lead the fight for third

Last year’s hotly contested ‘best-of-the-rest’ battle between Ferrari, Mercedes, McLaren, and Aston Martin appears to have fractured; McLaren is nipping at Red Bull’s heels (or, in this weekend’s case, barking at the postman from the living room while the postman continues to deliver his mail), Aston Martin has collapsed into midfield obscurity, to leave Ferrari and Mercedes battling for mid-top-10 placings.

This weekend, there might be a podium on offer. Oscar Piastri had his best lap from Q3 — good enough for third — deleted, which handed George Russell a late call-up to the press conference room post-session.

Had Piastri’s lap been reinstated as a result of McLaren’s protest, then the top three might be a locked door to either Ferrari or Mercedes unless force majeure befell any of the front-running trio. But as the Australian’s time remained in the bin, following the decision of the stewards to render the protest inadmissible, it’s up to the Ferraris and Mercedes drivers to contain him throughout the race to make a well-aimed stab at finishing on the podium’s shortest step.

Russell believes that Mercedes should have the edge on Ferrari over the course of the race, as the Italian squad has perhaps regressed a little of late relative to the Silver Arrows. Across the sprint race, Russell generally had the edge on Sainz after the early laps, and reversed the Ferrari driver’s successful lap one attack at Turn 4 six laps later.

Hamilton had the legs on Leclerc as well, although the Monegasque made an electric start to shrug off his 10th-by-default grid position following a lap-less SQ3. Although temperatures are expected to be slightly lower, tyre preservation will be key, particularly if the trio of DRS zones lead to trains forming in the upper mid-pack.

Mercedes had the legs on Ferrari in the sprint, and Russell is optimistic that Piastri’s woes could leave open a path to the podium

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Downforce losses following other cars will start to exacerbate the effect of sliding as the tyres lose peak performance. Ensuring Piastri bears the brunt of that will help Mercedes’ cause in its hope of clinching a third successive podium finish.

«I’m confident Lewis and I can probably beat the Ferraris tomorrow, and hopefully hold up Oscar’s progress,» Russell reckoned. «But it’s a long race, high degradation, anything can happen.

«Last week I lost a lot of time battling with Lando and probably focused too much on the guys ahead of me. And ultimately that cost me the position to Lewis and almost with Charles as well. I think the race is behind us tomorrow.»

How will the rest get on?

Assuming no retirements among the front-runners, this leaves the bottom three positions in the top 10 up for grabs. Sergio Perez likely has one locked down, although it’s telling that Russell did not really include the Red Bull driver in his estimations. Perhaps the Mexican will enjoy a stronger race and battle through the order, but the sprint race provided few indications of that; he finished nearly four seconds down on Leclerc.

Magnussen’s pace, before the Aston Martin posed a roadblock to the Alpines, was stronger than both Ocon and Gasly in any case, so Hulkenberg might be able to build a break over his fellow points-fanciers

Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Ocon start from the fifth row, but Pierre Gasly and the RB duo will attempt to challenge for a point or two. Alpine’s run of form suggests that it might be the favourite to continue its form from Montreal and Barcelona and account for ninth and 10th, but neither were able to make a break past Lance Stroll despite closing down the Aston Martin driver in the sprint. Tyre degradation can account for that, and strategic offsets permitted in the full grand prix should be able to yield track position, but the pair — Gasly in particular — might struggle to break down the RB of Ricciardo on-track.

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Hulkenberg should be buoyed by Kevin Magnussen’s efforts in the sprint. Although the Dane couldn’t make inroads towards Perez in the 23-lap race, he capitalised on Stroll holding up the cars behind to put together his own ‘race’ in ninth.

Magnussen’s pace, before the Aston Martin posed a roadblock to the Alpines, was stronger than both Ocon and Gasly in any case, so Hulkenberg might be able to build a break over his fellow points-fanciers. It all depends on whether the Haas driver can get the degradation under control.

Magnussen was a comfortable ninth in the sprint, which suggests Hulkenberg could be in the mix for points

Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images