Who could replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes?

If you’re one of those F1 fans who enjoy the ‘silly season’ as much as, if not more than, the action on the track, then the 2023 season must have been pretty uninspiring for you. Not only did Max Verstappen dominate on track, but when the dust settled at the end of the 2023 season, all 20 drivers were scheduled to return in 2024, a first for the sport. was.

But you, dear reader, are in luck. Because this year, silly season is set to reach new heights.

Not only are 13 driver contracts set to expire at the end of 2024, but one of the sport’s most coveted seats is in contention for 2025. With the shocking news that Lewis Hamilton will leave Mercedes at the end of 2024, a spot is available at the Brackley-based operation for the 2025 Ferrari season and drive.

Who are Mercedes’ options for 2025?

mick schumacher

The team’s first choice comes from within the organization.

Mick Schumacher joined the Ferrari Driver Academy in 2019 due to his father, legendary driver Michael Schumacher, and his ties to the team. Young Schumacher entered F1 with Haas in 2021. However, after two seasons with the American-based team, Schumacher did not have a seat when Haas selected Nico Hulkenberg to drive alongside Kevin Magnussen for the 2023 season.

Schumacher will then join Mercedes as a reserve driver for the 2023 season, racing in the World Endurance Championship with Alpine, and will continue in that role in 2024.

His current boss, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, has long admired him. Last summer, he spoke highly of Schumacher before the Canadian Grand Prix, crediting Schumacher with some of the team’s success in 2023.I think he got burned last year,” Wolff said. Speaking at the Canadian Grand Prix. “You have to give and provide different environments and frameworks for different drivers. We’re all different people. And whoever gets him, he’s going to get a very good pilot. .

“It’s great to have such a mature, successful and experienced F1 driver supporting us,” Wolff added. “In the simulator with his feedback, having him in the simulation all night is a huge advantage for some European Grands Prix, and having him provide data on Saturday is a huge advantage for us. ”

With two years of F1 experience, Schumacher may be the obvious choice for Mercedes.

But he’s not the only option.

Carlos Sainz Jr.

Hamilton is set to drive alongside Charles Leclerc from 2025 onwards, meaning another Ferrari driver, Carlos Sainz Jr., will not have a seat in 2025.

Is there a possibility that a 1:1 switch will be offered?

On the one hand, it makes sense. Keep in mind that while Hamilton is a seven-time world champion, Sainz is a talented driver in his own right and was the only non-Red Bull driver to win a Grand Prix in 2023. Since joining Ferrari for the 2021 season, Sainz has achieved excellent results. He finished seventh in the pair last season, while he finished fifth in the Drivers’ Championship (2021 and 2022).

The other one? The looming specter of Audi. The German-based manufacturer is due to join the grid as a works team in 2026, and Sainz has long been linked with Audi as one of its drivers. His father, Carlos Sainz Sr., just won the Dakar Rally as an Audi driver. The young driver could be the linchpin of Audi’s new F1 operation, so would Mercedes be willing to sign him to a short-term deal?

Sainz could be an option for Mercedes, but the move seems to only raise more questions than provide potential answers.

Photo provided by: Qian Jun/MB Media/Getty Images

Alex Albon

Alex Albon has completed a great season with Williams. After returning to the F1 grid with Williams for the 2022 season, Albon led the team to a surprising seventh place finish in 2023. Albon scored all but one of the team’s 28 points for the year, and his success led many to speculate that he would be the next to play. A return to Red Bull could be in his future.

But does his future lie with Mercedes?

The Williams-to-Mercedes pipeline has paid off for Mercedes recently, with the success of Valtteri Bottas and George Russell, and the team may aim to harness that energy again with Albon. And with Albon one of 13 drivers whose contracts are set to expire at the end of 2024, the timing could be right for such a move.

Of course, when discussing Albon, there is also the option of Red Bull. Upon his move to Williams, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said there was a clause in the contract that would allow Albon and Red Bull to work together in the future. Albon could also be eyed for the seat, given that there is always speculation regarding Sergio Perez’s own future at Red Bull.

Strange driver competing in VCARB/Red Bull

Now that we’ve mentioned Perez, let’s get there.

At the moment, Red Bull and VisaCash RB appear to have four drivers in three spots for 2025. Unless Verstappen makes a shock decision to quit the sport (which he has hinted at for some time), the spot at Red Bull is his. As long as he wants.

This leaves two spots on the table for 2025, with another seat for Red Bull and VCARB.

As mentioned above, Perez is under contract until 2024, but despite finishing second in the Drivers’ Championship last season, there is weekly speculation about his future. There is.

Also, Yuki Tsunoda, Daniel Ricciardo, and Liam Lawson. All three drove for AlphaTauri last season, and the pair of Tsunoda and Ricciardo will start the year at VCARB with Lawson in a reserve role.

One of these four drivers will likely exit as the odd driver when the music stops at the end of 2024, and could be an option for Mercedes in 2025.

What can complicate matters is timing. Unless one of the drivers is sacked midway through the season (as happened with Nic de Vries last year), the situation between Red Bull and VCARB is unlikely to be resolved until later this year. Mercedes may not want to wait until the issue is resolved as it could lose the opportunity to secure another driver for 2025.

Photo by Edmund So/Eurasia Sports Images/Getty Images

Esteban Ocon

“The Esty Besties are in Mercedes, baby!”

Far-fetched? Maybe so, maybe not.

There is a strong bond between Esteban Ocon, Mercedes and team principal Toto Wolff. Ocon is a graduate of the Mercedes junior program and has strong links with Wolff. Even before the team retained Bottas, Ocon was rumored to be linked with Mercedes ahead of the 2020 season, and although the team ultimately replaced Bottas with Russell, Ocon’s links with Mercedes are strong.

The driver has long been grateful to Mercedes and Wolff for his presence in F1.

“[Wolff] Thanks to him and Mercedes, I was able to take the next step. Without him I wouldn’t be here in F1. We still have a very good relationship, so I’m grateful to him. ” Ocon said in 2022.

Ocon is under contract with Alpine until the 2024 season, so it could be the ideal time for the Mercedes junior graduate to return home.

Fernando Alonso

Could Mercedes replace Hamilton with his former McLaren teammate?

As Hamilton’s contract negotiations with Mercedes dragged on into last season, with the team struggling to make physical adjustments in both the W13 and W14, many pundits were pinning Hamilton on a move to Ferrari and shock Fernando. It was linked with Alonso’s move to Mercedes. Who is the greatest among them?Ted Kravitz linked Alonso to Mercedes More than once The last few seasons.

When the shocking news broke that Hamilton would move to Ferrari in 2025, Alonso Certainly an option for Mercedes.meanwhile Sky Sports F1 In a special telecast on Thursday, Jenson Button also joined in the speculation that Alonso would move to Mercedes for 2025.

Alonso, like the majority of the grid, is under contract with Aston Martin until the 2024 season, with the team expressed a desire to keep him Beyond this year. However, there is also a scenario where Mercedes swoops in and adds Alonso as a short-term replacement, while keeping their long-term driver options open alongside Russell.

This will tell you the last name in the list…

Photo courtesy of Eric Alonso – Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images

andrea kimi antonelli

Mercedes has another in-house option.

That will lead them in very different directions.

So far, all the drivers mentioned are either current F1 drivers or drivers with F1 experience, like Schumacher. However, Mercedes could take a different approach and cede a spot to an up-and-coming driver in its junior program.

What are the options? Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

Antonelli joined the Mercedes junior team in 2019 and has since risen rapidly through the lower ranks. Just a few weeks after his 15th birthday, he joined the Italian F4 grid in 2021 and, despite competing in just nine races, finished 10th in the standings with three podiums. did.

In 2022, Antonelli won both the Italian F4 Championship and the ADAC F4 Championship. He also won the FIA ​​Motorsport Games Formula 4 Cup as part of the Italian team. In 2023, Antonelli won two further championships, winning the Formula Regional Middle East Championship and the Formula Regional European Championship. He plans to avoid F3 altogether in 2024, making the jump from Prema Racing to F2.

He is only 17 years old and will turn 18 this summer. But if the timing is right, he could make the leap to F1 for the 2025 season. A strong F2 season this year could pave the way for such a move. Will Mercedes go in this direction? That remains to be seen. But it’s optional.

Alternatively, as outlined above, the team could add a veteran driver on a short-term deal and target Antonelli as his eventual successor.