Bearman confirmed for Haas in ‘25. Really good news for him and I’m glad to see some new drivers coming through.
Really good news to hear that Oliver Bearman will be on the grid next year.He was very impressive as a short notice stand in for Carlos at the Saudi GP earlier this year. Good to see another British driver on the grid.
Can't help but feel this might be another Devries situation. Bearman did well in Saudi considering the circumstances, but his junior formula results otherwise aren't that of a superstar. Meanwhile Paul Aron might become a rookie F2 championship without any F1 team giving him the time of day. I suspect it's easier for a decent driver to get 95% up to speed quickly (enough to be closer than expected as a sub) than it is to find those last two tenths.
You might be right, but F2 results aren’t always the best way to judge a driver at F1 level. I don’t have any expectations particularly, I’m just happy he’s on the grid, he has a chance to impress and I’d rather see how he gets on, than watch another season from one of the old men or failed drivers, who’d otherwise be occupying that seat.
I broke this out of the race thread, because I wanted to expand on it. It does seem like there’s still a big twist in the driver market to come. It seems Sainz has decided he won’t be going to Williams, but he hasn’t signed with Audi, which suggests to me there’s still a chance at one of the top teams. The story doing the rounds is that Merc don’t feel Antonelli is ready and that Sainz is back on the table there, but I have the feeling it might be bigger than that.
I heard or read that The fact he’s not committed to Williams or Sauber / Audi , is making his long term commitment to any project seem questionable . That is why assuming Sainz doesn’t go to Williams ( or SA ) , they don’t want him if he won’t commit for the long term . Sainz may think 1 or 2 years in the Mercedes ( or Alpine ? ) , and who could blame him ?
Adrian Newey has confirmed his official leaving date from RBR which is March 2025. Seems that Ferrari are no longer favorites to sign him as there is a difference of opinion about his wages. Aston Martin now look to be in the box seat with daddy Stroll offering mouth watering terms at the Saudi GP earlier this year.
If ferrari have not paid attention to newey salary so far then more fool them. It is a short term appointment for anyone really.
Makes you wonder how much Ferrari want another championship? There`s plenty of money for drivers,but they are not willing to agree with terms of an icon designer. Just give him what he wants Ferrari and let`s have some more silverware in the trophy cabinet
The Ferrari share price enjoyed a big jump on the announcement of Lewis. It would again if they secured Newey. It can't be the money that is the issue. There maybe other factors, as has been said previously, travelling to Italy. That said, he could moor his new boat down in the Med for some months. The changes for '26 are quite substantial, weight distribution will no doubt be a factor in the handling. I wonder though, if Ferrari feel it is not as significant as the ground effect changes.
Ferrari, who recently lost technical boss Enrico Cardile to Aston Martin, also reportedly hold concerns that Newey would hold too much power within the team.
I do wonder if Ferrari have a salary issue - i.e. they are allowed to pay their drivers and 3 top peoples salary any amount that is excluded from the budget cap. So to employ Newey they have to somehow get rid of one of the top 3 salaries!
He most likely would but it is about a team that can win. I imagine even Lewis was considering an opportunity to work with Newey. Seeing Lewis and his emotions at a win again, I wonder what his thoughts were when signing with Ferrari. Was it a swan song or a belief Newey would go there. I am beginning to think it was the desire to have the ferrari label before retiring. Let's see if he is reenergised after Silverstone.
Can’t find the Sauber team thread , so putting this on here Binotto replaces Seidl as head of Audi F1 project please log in to view this image IMAGE SOURCE, GETTY IMAGES Image caption, Mattia Binotto left Ferrari after 28 years in 2022 Andrew Benson F1 Correspondent Published 4 hours ago Andreas Seidl has been removed as head of Audi's Formula 1 project and replaced by former Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto. The decision to replace Seidl, after 19 months in the role of chief executive officer, comes amid concerns about the progress of the Sauber team that Audi has taken over as the basis for its F1 entry in 2026. Oliver Hoffmann, previously chairman of the boards of all Sauber companies, has also been removed from his role. Binotto, who was replaced as Ferrari team principal after the 2022 season, has taken on the role of chief operating and chief technical officer. Gernot Döllner, who has been appointed the new chairman of the boards of Sauber companies, said: "With his extensive experience of more than 25 years in F1, [Binotto] will undoubtedly be able to make a decisive contribution for Audi. "Our aim is to bring the entire F1 project up to F1 speed by means of clear management structures, defined responsibilities, reduced interfaces, and efficient decision-making processes. "For this purpose, the team must be able to act independently and quickly." Seidl started in his role for Audi in January last year, after four years with McLaren. He was charged with preparing Audi for its F1 entry in 2026, when new regulations for both chassis and engine are coming into force. German Seidl is said, by a source close to him, to have become frustrated with what he perceived as Audi's delay in fully committing to the F1 project, in particular in reshaping Sauber. That had a knock-on effect in the driver market as Audi have signed German veteran Nico Hulkenberg from the 2025 season, but so far do not have a second one from next year. There was also tension between Hoffmann and Seidl over the management style of the project. Sauber finished ninth of the 10 teams in the constructors' championship last season, when they were racing under the name Alfa Romeo. This year, they are 10th and last after 13 of 24 races. The team has not scored a point and, on average qualifying pace, its car is the slowest in the field. In June last year, Seidl recruited James Key as technical director, three months after he left McLaren following the introduction of a new technical structure aimed at improving the team's performance. McLaren have since become a leading team and this season are back as a regular frontrunner for the first time in 12 years. Audi initially set itself the target of being competitive and wining races within three years of its entry.
Has anyone heard that the FIA are looking into the feasibility of air conditioning for the drivers ? Surely they mean like water cooled suits or something ? I saw it on Autosport , Lewis is against the idea .
So with Sainz in at Williams for the next couple of years (what an endorsement for James Vowles and co), there’s still quite a lot up in the air in the driver market. Mercedes/Toto has control of the board, but I still don’t see how it all fits back together. Verstappen or Antonelli, has been the Merc statement all season. With the “Marko clause” off the table for a couple of years and Verstappen presumably locked in place with RedBull, can Merc - currently the team on a roll, really hire a rookie for next year? They’ve let every other opportunity go by and I can’t believe they don’t have a backup plan. Could we see Bottas go back there as a safe pair of hands? Alpine still have a seat free and it seems they are getting in to bed with Merc from 2025 or 2026, so if not at Merc that seems like the obvious place for Antonelli to land? Is Bottas the obvious choice otherwise? Looks like Audi will be left with the what everyone else doesn’t want and it’s telling that Sainz went to Williams on a two year deal rather than sign a long term contract with them. Additionally, the noise coming out of the project isn’t good. Mick Schumacher would be a good marketing choice, although that’s a role Nico also fills to some extent already. Ralf’s also been mentioned for Alpine and with the Merc connection you can see how that would happen. The Piastri/Norris relationship is a potential powder keg, could we see them take a short term option and then see if the board gets reset next year, or the year after if that blows up and triggers further moves. I don’t see them getting anyone they’ll want to commit to long term, as they were aiming for with Sainz. The fox amongst the chickens is the fifth RedBull driver, who won’t have a seat in 2025. I’m assuming Lawson gets promoted to RB , so that leaves Perez or Ricciardo as the odd man out. Are we going to see Audi hold out for one of them - I could see how Daniel fits in there, less so Perez, who I’d think would be more likely to leave the sport.
As far as I can tell, the ATR limits (wind tunnel/cfd allowance based on Constructors Championship position) impact on 2025 development work irrespective as to whether it’s carried out on the 2025 rules or the 2026 rules. Can anyone confirm this? If so I’m not sure how I feel about that. These rules are effectively success ballast, but they are a bit more subtle and they can be somewhat overcome through engineering effectiveness and efficiency which I think makes them just about tolerable in F1, whereas success ballast would not be. For clean slate rules such as we have for 2026, it feels more F1 to me to say - for 2026 rule work everyone has the same allocation through June 2026 and then ATR starts. ATR continues to be applied for 2025 rule work through to the end of that season. Interested to hear others opinions on this?
