As we have approached just over the halfway way mark of the current F1 season, I thought we could look at what current seats are still available and the possible people who could be taking them seats. Next season is definitely going to be a season of change, and some questionable decisions, *cough cough Redbull* which is hardly surprising, as change is happening due to so many contracts expiring this year. It’s definitely a time for both drivers and teams to seek new opportunities. With a lot of speculation around who are Mercedes bringing in to be Georgie Porgie’s team mate, and not to mention my man Carlos, which let’s face it, at this point they are going to announce he is driving the safety car, I just know it, there are still other teams who are yet to announce who’s completing their driver lineup for 2025. Myself, is just waiting a call from James Vowles offering me the Williams seat, he knows where to find me, I’m a follower of his on Instagram, and I have the statistics to prove I deserve it. The F1 23 game does not lie.
Williams
Me aside, it really is uncertain as to who is going to get that last seat at Williams. Apparently Valtteri Bottas has held a secret meeting with principal James Vowles and having previously worked together at Mercedes, he is not a driver to be ruled out of the lineup. We also have the fact that maybe they could renew Logan’s contract, however, having it already been renewed once and no signs of top 10 finishes, it’s looking like his time is coming to an end in F1 as I just can’t see other teams fighting to have him. I’m now going to have to find a different bottom finisher to support next season. What an inconvenience. Sainz could be the smooth operator they are looking for, but if I’m honest, no disrespect to Williams, but I think going into partnership with Deliveroo would be a better deal. I’m all for aiming big, but lets keep it realistic. As much as I do think there’s been a slight improvement with Logan, having someone experienced like Bottas in the team, would probably be my guess who gets the seat.
KICK Sauber
With Hulkenberg confirmed to be taking one of the two seats, that leaves at least one of this seasons drivers at risk. Whilst Audi is entering in 2026, this will be a decision for the long term and out of Zhou and Bottas, if they were to pick one, in all honesty I would pick Bottas. Bottas has been outperforming Zhou a lot this season, leaving the Chinese driver pretty forgettable. As I said above though, I can’t see Bottas staying at Sauber, which doesn’t leave the team with much choice. Obviously we can’t rule out Sainz from the seat, in my opinion it is a slightly riskier move, but one that has a higher chance of pulling off, that is if Sainz decides he doesn’t want to be the local bus driver. I can’t imagine this being his preferable choice though and I’m obviously talking about the seat. My guess would be that now Esteban Ocon is without a seat, I think out of the choices they have, he is the most likely to get the place. Could you imagine how funny it would be though if they decided to just bring Kevin Magnussen across to the team as well.
Mercedes
One of the main questions on everyone’s minds is who is going to get the Mercedes seat. Junior driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli is rumored to be a heavy favourite, however I think this would be a bad decision at this point in time. Although George is a really good driver, he does make silly mistakes when under pressure and so having a junior driver as a team mate, I don’t think is a good mix. I would let George gain a few more years experience and then perhaps move Andrea across. Which leads us to, yes you’ve guessed it… Logan. Just kidding, Sainz. Not to spoil this post, but he will be mentioned a lot throughout.. I feel that Sainz would be a great choice to complete the lineup, he is experienced and proving to be more than deserving of a seat. The only negative would be that Russel’s main character personality would be slightly dented. Jokes or not jokes aside, I reckon the pair could be a strong partnership and one better than the Ferrari. There, I said it.
Alpine
Good riddance to Ocon that’s all I’m saying. There are 3 options that potentially could get the Alpine seat, at this point in the post, I don’t know if I dare mention his name again but I will because this may come as a shock but Sainz is one of those options. I’ve heard even Real Madrid want him. Alpine haven’t hid the fact that they do want Sainz however I still fail to see why he would go there. I have nothing against Alpine but I do feel like Sainz is too good for a few of these teams and although the teams will benefit from Carlos, I struggle to see how he will benefit from them. Jack Doohan is apparently the second option that is being considered. Having finished third in F2 in 2023, he has said he wanted to continue on his Alpine reserve duties. With a seat now available, could he possibly take the place? The third option is Mick Schumacher. Bruno Famin has said “it would be a mistake not to have Mick on the list” however with a likely switch to IndyCar, I can’t see him taking the seat.
Visa Cash App RB
I will be honest, I really can’t see Daniel Ricciardo being given a new contact for this team. As much as I like him as a person, I can’t help but feel that he is quite inconsistent. With him being in the sport long enough now, and compared to other drivers with equally as much experience if not more, who are doing better, I just feel like he’s been given a few chances and isn’t showing much progress at all. Which leads me on to Liam Lawson. In my opinion Liam is getting this seat. It would make more sense to me for Visa Cash App to give Liam a seat for the time being and see how he gets on. If he was to do well, then I think he could be a potential replacement for Perez. I feel like he impressed enough in his five race stint last season even scoring points, that I would be very surprised if he doesn’t get a seat at all next year. The fact that he has been selected for a “filming day” is surely a good sign though, as those sort of opportunities are limited.
Haas
Haas go through drivers so quickly, although I’m sure they would have kept Hulkenberg on if they could. I must admit although I joked about them getting rid of Kevin, I didn’t actually think they would this soon. Although I think Haas have made noticeable progress this season, admittedly because Hulkenberg has shown what he can do with the car, I don’t think they can afford to get rid of experienced drivers. Nevertheless they have announced Oliver Bearman as one of the drivers, which leaves the seat of Kevin left to replace. One of the most likely choices is Esteban Ocon. Having a fractured relationship with Gasly and making some questionable moves towards him this season, is no doubt one of the factors he is without a contract, however the fact that he is now on to his 8th season in the sport, I think is something that will appeal to the team. Personally I think Ocon is there best bet as he has had experience in three different teams and I do think they need someone with experience.
Red Bull
I couldn’t leave Red Bull out of this post as something definitely needs to change, and I don’t think any amount of kitchen talks is going to make him the Mexican any better. Max needs a better team mate, he can’t keep trying to defend people on his own and if I was him, I’d be pretty frustrated. I can’t see Ricciardo or Tsunoda getting the seat, I don’t think Tsunoda and Max would even jell that well, could you imagine two very heated people as team mates? I personally think Max and Sainz would make a really strong team and part of me hopes that the reason he’s taking so long is because he’s waiting to see what happens with Perez, but maybe I’m asking for something big to happen. I know there was talks that perhaps Liam Lawson could get the seat. As I mentioned previously, I think it would be beneficial for him to get more experience at Visa Cash App first but I do think they see a long term future with Liam being part of Red Bull.
What are your seat predictions?
Amy x
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