Is Carlos Sainz going to Mercedes? These Formula 1 cockpits are still up for grabs in 2025

Mercedes: Antonelli risk or Sainz safety option?

Mercedes was taking risks for months in its search for a successor to Lewis Hamilton. In view of the internal disputes at Red Bull, team boss Toto Wolff speculated that he could poach world champion Max Verstappen. But the Dutchman opposed the poaching attempts despite the ongoing crisis atmosphere.

The second risky option was Formula 2 driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Mercedes wants to avoid the competition getting their hands on the top talent from its own junior program. A direct promotion to the factory team would ensure Antonelli’s retention. That’s why Wolff waited to see how well he does in F2. Apart from his sprint victory in Silverstone, Antonelli has not yet presented himself in a shape to apply for a promotion to Formula 1.

So other options are coming up again. Carlos Sainz, who was still sure a month ago that he would not be driving for Mercedes in 2025, is back in the game. However, Mercedes only offers the prospect of a one-year contract, as the Silver Arrows want to keep the door open for Antonelli in the future. This is said to have put Sainz off, but the recent developments at Mercedes have probably made this offer more attractive.

Racing Bulls & Red Bull: Daniel Ricciardo fights for sporting survival

With the small Red Bull team, you don’t even have to look ahead to next season. At the Racing Bulls, the driver decisions could already become reality during the summer break. In principle, the starting position would be relatively simple. Yuki Tsunoda is set. With Daniel Ricciardo and Liam Lawson, there are two candidates for the second cockpit, one of whom will be left behind.

Before this season, that unfortunate role fell to Lawson, although he has done well in his substitute appearances in the second half of the 2023 Formula 1 season. But he is unlikely to be relegated to the bench for another year, especially with other teams knocking. Red Bull also wants to keep him, especially since Daniel Ricciardo’s performances have been inconsistent at best. So there are signs that Lawson could get the cockpit. Possibly during this season.

But the game is complicated by Sergio Perez’s Red Bull cockpit. His new contract is said to be practically worthless due to the exit clauses. After the Belgian GP, ​​he can be no more than 100 points behind Verstappen or no more than five places behind him in the World Championship, otherwise Red Bull has the option of kicking him out. Even goal number 1 is hardly achievable.

If Perez is kicked out of Red Bull, it seems unlikely that the Racing Bulls will take him in. Then there would suddenly be enough places for Ricciardo, Tsunoda and Lawson. Who is on which team? The latest rumors have Ricciardo at Red Bull and Lawson at the Racing Bulls. Looking beyond Formula 1, Red Bull also has a small luxury problem: Junior Isack Hadjar is leading Formula 2, Ayumu Iwasa is fighting for the title in Super Formula. One of them will only have a chance if Ricciardo and Perez are kicked out until the winter break.

Haas: Has Esteban Ocon already signed?

At Haas, the situation now seems to have been sorted out. Oliver Bearman is set for next year. The Brit’s transfer has been hinted at since 2023 and is therefore no surprise, just like the departure of Nico Hülkenberg. Esteban Ocon will probably drive alongside him next year, who, according to media reports, has already signed a contract with the US team. Kevin Magnussen will probably not only disappear from Haas, but from Formula 1 completely.

Alpine: Is there a second Formula 1 chance for Mick Schumacher?

At Alpine is hard to find. The French have already been linked with almost all drivers looking for a Formula 1 job. Most recently, for example, with Carlos Sainz, who was previously in talks with Audi-Sauber and Williams. It was only in June that it became known that the Spaniard was also in deep negotiations with Alpine. He would probably be the preferred choice. But if Sainz still prefers to go to Mercedes, there are hardly any alternatives with sufficient experience.

Logan Sargeant has seemed to be on the ropes for months. It is unlikely that he will remain in Formula 1. But the race to succeed him is still open. Williams also looked like Carlos Sainz’s future employer at one point, but things have since gone quiet on the deal.

This was primarily because Williams had had enough of the three-time Grand Prix winner’s wait-and-see approach. Rumors now suggest that Valtteri Bottas could take over the second cockpit alongside Alex Albon in Grove. Bottas drove for the British team after his Formula 1 debut in 2012 until 2016. He would also fulfill the team’s need for long-term support. The Finn himself is also looking for a long-term place to stay and maintains good contact with team boss James Vowles, with whom he once worked at Mercedes.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli would probably not be able to fulfil this requirement. The Italian could – like George Russell before him – first familiarise himself with Formula 1 at Williams as training for a future at Mercedes. Team boss James Vowles knows very well from his time at Mercedes what the Silver Arrows junior driver is capable of.

Sauber-Audi: Unattractive factory team?

Before Audi arrives, the hut burns down at Sauber is ablaze. The team is slower than it has been for years and currently offers the weakest package and crisis atmosphere in Formula 1. As such, interest in the second seat alongside Nico Hülkenberg is limited.