This year's driver market has been one of the craziest in recent years and even though we've had so much going on, we still have some empty seats to be filled! So, I thought it'd be nice to sit down and go through what we know so far. Who is driving where in 2019?. I've got an inkling that as soon as this is published, it'll be out of date!
Mercedes: Lewis Hamilton & Valtteri Bottas
This came as no surprise to anyone really. With Hamilton on course to win his 5th world title, why should he go anywhere? Bottas has shown that he can beat Hamilton in a straight fight, a prime example being the Russian GP where he, of course, had to move out of the way for Lewis. His unquestioning obedience to team orders helped his cause as well. A man in his prime with the perfect wingman. Mercedes look good for 2019.
Ferrari:Sebastian Vettel & Charles Leclerc
No surprise to see Vettel return to the Scuderia for another year but a big surprise to see Ferrari take the plunge with Leclerc. Of course, it's what we all wanted. It's been a long time since we've seen a young gun get promoted to a top team within a year of being in the sport. Expect to see Charles on the top step next year! However, the big question is, will Ferrari treat him like Kimi? Will they favour Vettel or will they be equal? Something tells me Charles won't listen to team orders! It's going to be really exciting to see how things pan out!
Red Bull: Max Verstappen & Pierre Gasly
With the announcement that Red Bull would be moving to Honda engines in 2019, there was always the question "Who's going to jump ship?". Unsurprisingly, with Verstappen being treated as First Driver, it was Ricciardo who decided to leave the team come the end of the 2018 season. This left a valuable seat open in one of the top teams, a seat which Gasly jumped at the chance to take. Gasly's performances in Toro Rosso this year have been fantastic. His 4th place in Bahrain really made the paddock sit up and take notice of him. Verstappen is still the fiery racer we know and love and his win in Austria showed that he still deserves a drive in a top team. Red Bull now has one of the youngest teams on the grid which should make for some very exciting racing between the two of them. Let's just hope it doesn't end in tears like Baku did!
Racing Point Force India: Sergio Perez and ?
Force India have had a very tough 2018. The team entered into administration during the summer break and faced an uncertain future until they were bought out by a consortium led by a certain driver's father, Lawrence Stroll. Perez's efforts to save the team guaranteed that he would remain at the team. There have also been rumours circulating that he is now one of the majority shareholders within the team. With Lance Stroll's father buying the team out and Lance set to leave Williams at the end of the season, it looks all but confirmed that Lance Stroll will replace Esteban Ocon at the team. It's a real shame that we look set to lose a talent like Ocon. The entire F1 community has rallied behind him and hopes that he can find a seat for next season. However, we can't deny the fact that while Stroll is a "pay driver", he has put in some good performances. It'll be interesting to see what he can do in a high midfield team, should he join Force India.
Haas F1 Team: Romain Grosjean & Kevin Magnussen
The confirmation of Grosjean and Magnussen was received with a little indifference by the F1 community. Both drivers have been doing the job( although Magnussen has arguably been doing better) and, in reality, they didn't really have any other options. One cannot deny, however, that the lineup is still decent. Magnussen's fiery driving style has made him both loved and hated by the community and Grosjean's flashes of brilliance(and stupidity: *cough* Baku *cough) make this team a good contender for next year. The only problem is, Grosjean can't blame Ericsson anymore!
Renault Sport F1 Team: Daniel Ricciardo & Nico Hulkenberg
One of the biggest shocks was the announcement that Ricciardo would be moving to Renault for the 2019 season. With Red Bull moving to Honda engines next year and Ricciardo seemingly getting all the bad luck, we can now see why he moved. But at the time of the announcement, it was a surprise nonetheless. Right now, it seems like a downgrade for Daniel to go to Renault but maybe he's seen the developments for 2019 and thinks that they can challenge. I suppose, when we look at the constructor's table, Renault are the best of the rest currently. The retention of Hulkenberg still gives us all hope that he can get a podium at some point. PLEASE DO IT HULKIE!!! Arguably,Renault have one of the strongest lineups on the grid for next year. Let's see what happens!
The promotion of Pierre Gasly to Red Bull left a seat open at Toro Rosso, leading to one of the biggest shocks this season. The return of Danil Kvyat. Nobody expected the Russian to return to the sport, especially not to the team who kicked him out last year! But, alas, here we are. Personally, I'm glad to see Kvyat back. He was treated very harshly by Red Bull in '16 and '17. I hope that he can prove that he belongs in F1. But there is still uncertainty over who will be alongside him. Initially, sources placed Dan Ticktum at the team but that was quickly shut down as he didn't have the necessary license points to compete. Brendan Hartley is, of course, still part of the team and he has produced some good performances but is he likely to ever get a promotion to a top team? Hence why now, Alexander Albon seems to be in the frame. He was recently announced as a driver for Nissan Nismo in Formula E but he could potentially break his contract and join F1. He's been impressive in F2 and is currently 2nd in the championship ahead of Norris and behind Russell who now have drives in F1. It seems only fair that he should get one now. Watch this space!
Mclaren F1: Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz
We'll be saying goodbye to Fernando Alonso at the end of this year and to Stoffel Vandoorne, who moves to Formula E. An all-new lineup awaits us at Mclaren with Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz joining the team. Norris has been impressive in F2 and I personally think he's deserving of a drive. He's done plenty of tests and development work for the team which hopefully will pay off for them in 2019. It's also nice to see another young driver make the jump to F1. With Sainz, the main question was will he stay in the Red Bull program(since he was just on loan to Renault) or jump ship. It was interesting yet not surprising that he opted to stick with the Renault powered cars. Honda is still an unknown but on the flip side, the Mclaren is woeful this year. Can a new lineup and perhaps a change in team personnel bring about a resurgence in the team? Only time will tell, but it will be certainly a development to keep your eyes on!
Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team: Kimi Raikonnen & Antonio Giovinazzi
Even just looking at that lineup makes me smile. We all thought Kimi would retire at the end of this year but thankfully he hasn't and he's going back to where it all started. Sauber. He is going to be a huge asset to Sauber with both the sponsors he brings and also the wealth of experience he brings as well. Don't be surprised if Sauber end up fighting for podiums again! With the departure of Marcus Ericsson from the sport, Antonio Giovinazzi was finally given a full-time seat. Granted, he didn't really do himself any favours with his one-off appearance in China '17 where he crashed twice, but he is still an immensely talented driver. I'm predicting a Giovinazzi/Leclerc Ferrari Lineup in 2021! This lineup is certainly one of the most exciting ones for 2019. Will Sauber be even more competitive next year?
Williams F1: George Russell and ?
It's refreshing to see Williams move away from exclusively signing pay drivers and instead go for fresh,young talent. To the relative surprise of everyone, Williams announced that George Russell would be taking the place of Lance Stroll for 2019. Russell is the current points leader in F2 and looks set to win that championship. Russell is a Mercedes junior driver and has done plenty of tests for the factory team, even setting the unofficial lap record around the Hungaroring! But now we have the question of who will be alongside him next year. In reality, this is Ocon's only chance at retaining a seat for next year. Claire Williams confirmed that he is definitely being considered for a seat in 2019 during an event announcing the signing of Russell. Robert Kubica can't be discounted. He is the 3rd driver for the team and is certainly a fan favourite like Ocon. He is vastly experienced but, in a race situation, will his injury hinder him? Of course, we can't forget Sirotkin. He's only managed to score 1 single point this season and that was due to a penalty for someone else. But, given how bad the car is, he's done reasonably well this season. Is it enough for Williams to give him a seat for next season? Potentially. He recently spoke to the press about the 2019 Williams car which might suggest that he'll be driving next season.
This is all, of course, speculation and we'll just have to wait to find out how the rest of the 2019 grid shapes up! As always, let me know what you think in the comments. I appreciate any feedback!
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