🏁 Why F1 2023 Will Deliver
Looking ahead to the new season feat. predictions, driver line-ups, and contracts
1st March | 62nd Edition
The new season is upon us.
101 days since the 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi, here we are.
Liveries have been revealed, pre-season testing is done, and plenty of drivers and personnel have shuffled amongst teams.
Next piece of the action? Friday Free Practice 1 of the Bahrain GP.
Last year, Red Bull won both Championships in indomitable style:
The driver’s championship was decided with 4 races to go
Red Bull had 17 wins and 28 podiums compared to 5 wins and 38 podiums for the rest of the grid
Most points for a driver in a season - 454
2nd the most points for a constructor in a season - 759
Most wins from different grid slots in a year - 7
Most wins outside pole position in a year - 9
Will this year be any different?
5 Things We Are Looking Forward To
Red Bull does start favorites, but…
Pre-season testing might lead you to believe that it’s going to be all Red Bull all year long. That very well might be true! But the optimist in me is holding out for an even better performance from Ferrari this year. Hear me out.
Last year Ferrari did shoot themselves in the foot time and time again. Horrific strategy decisions cost them a lot more than reliability or driver errors. To fix that, Ferrari supremacy has decided to let go of longtime servant Mattia Binotto and bring in Frenchman Frederic Vasseur. Frederic has over 6 years of experience running an F1 team including 5 years at Sauber where he brought a very special driver through the ranks for Ferrari, a certain Charles Leclerc.
Known to nurture young talent and do more with less, Frederic is sure to bring more of a comfortable working environment for Charles than any of his previous Team Principals. Ferrari is a special team to drive/work for, and the pressure associated with it is unrivaled, and hopefully, for the first time in his 5th year with the Scuderia, Charles will be allowed to focus only and only on his driving. No rookie-year pressure, no unwanted teammate rivalries, and no more playing driver and race director.
The car was competitive last year, and it has further improved this time around, who is to say Charles and Carlos won’t make it difficult for Max to make it 3 in a row?
Aston Martin has set tongues wagging
Could this be the biggest jump by an F1 team in a long time?
For a team who finished 7th in their inaugural two seasons, there is plenty of hype surrounding Aston Martin. And why shouldn’t there be?
Fernando Alonso completed the most laps by a driver in pre-season testing and judging by the lap times, the car is looking very very good, especially in race trim.
Barring a breakdown on the first day of testing, the Aston Martin was imperious through the three days, and with the 2-time champion helming the team, there is plenty of excitement surrounding it. And mind you, the combination of Lawrence Stroll and Fernando Alonso will be feisty for sure, but it could spark an incredible season for Aston Martin.
HAAS driver Kevin Magnussen, Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu, and Red Bull boss Christian Horner were all waxing lyrical about the ‘green arrows’ post-pre-season testing.
Could it be that Sebastian Vettel walked for Aston Martin so Alonso could run?
What about the ‘Silver Arrows’ then?
Dynasties come to an end, and it’s no different in F1. We saw it in the late 2000s with Ferrari, mid-2010s with Red Bull, and maybe now the same is happening with Mercedes.
Key personnel has left for other projects in and out of F1, and Mercedes were left behind in the development race for the new regulations last year by Red Bull and Ferrari.
Through the livery launch and pre-season testing this year, there was only cautious optimism from the Mercedes camp regarding their new car.
Toto Wolff was asked if he thinks the gap to Red Bull and Ferrari is bigger than before, he said: “It’s very difficult to judge at [this] stage. Everybody’s playing around with fuel loads and it’s a little bit [of] hiding on engine modes, so you can’t really judge – we’re still hiding a little bit.”
Time will tell but it’s unlikely that Lewis Hamilton will get to challenge for his 8th Driver’s title this year. However, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are arguably the best drivers pairing on the grid, and that only means super consistent results throughout the year.
Out with the old, In with new
A new season brings in new drivers and driver line-ups each year. And this year it’s no different.
For the second year in a row, we start without one of the stalwarts of the sport and this time it’s the 4-time world champion, Sebastian Vettel. No Seb for the first time in 16 years in F1. How time flies.
Sebastian Vettel’s shock retirement mid-season set off a chain of events entirely weird even for F1’s ‘silly’ standards.
Vettel vacated his seat at Aston Martin, which was filled by Fernando Alonso (nobody saw that coming either), whose vacated seat at Alpine was filled by Oscar Piastri. Only for Piastri to come out a few days later to say that he has NOT signed a contract with the French outfit because he had a seat in place for McLaren, who sacked fellow Aussie Daniel Ricciardio. So who goes to Alpine then? Frenchman Pierre Gasly from Alpha Tauri, whose vacated seat is now filled with former F2 champion Nyck de Vries for his maiden season in F1.
Comprende?
American Logan Sargeant, Dutchman Nyck de Vries, and Australian Oscar Piastri will drive in their rookie season. Meanwhile, Nico Hulkenberg will return for his 10th season in the sport.
Complete driver line-up (figure in bracket indicates which season in F1):
🇬🇧 Red Bull - Max Verstappen (9th) and Sergio Perez (12th)
🇮🇹 Ferrari - Charles Leclerc (6th) and Carlos Sainz (9th)
🇬🇧 Mercedes - Lewis Hamilton (17th) and George Russell (5th)
🇫🇷 Alpine - Esteban Ocon (7th) and Pierre Gasly (7th)
🇬🇧 McLaren - Lando Norris (5th) and Oscar Piastri (1st)
🇮🇹 Alfa Romeo - Valterri Bottas (11th) and Zhou Guanyu (2nd)
🇬🇧 Aston Martin - Fernando Alonso (19th) and Lance Stroll (7th)
🇺🇸 HAAS - Kevin Magnussen (8th) and Nico Hulkenberg (10th)
🇮🇹 Alpha Tauri - Yuki Tsunoda (3rd) and Nyck de Vries (1st)
🇬🇧 Williams - Alex Albon (4th) and Logan Sargeant (1st)
A crazier silly season might happen this year…
Only 3 drivers (Max Verstappen, Valtteri Bottas, and Lando Norris) have their contracts signed beyond 2024 with their respective teams.
The news is that Lewis Hamilton has a contract extension in waiting and it’s only a matter of time before he signs it. He seems confident that he is going “nowhere” and here to take the championship that was ‘robbed’ of him. But there is enough evidence to suggest that should the Mercedes be uncompetitive again this year, he might walk.
And oh boy, if that happens then it will once again set off a chain of events only this time at the top of the field.
How long is each F1 driver contracted for?
Max Verstappen – end 2028
Sergio Perez – end 2024
Lewis Hamilton – end 2023
George Russell – end 2023
Charles Leclerc – end 2024
Carlos Sainz – end 2024
Lando Norris – end 2025
Oscar Piastri – end 2024
Fernando Alonso – end 2024
Lance Stroll – unknown
Pierre Gasly – end 2024
Esteban Ocon – end 2024
Valtteri Bottas – end 2025
Zhou Guanyu – end 2023
Nyck de Vries – end 2024
Yuki Tsunoda – end 2023
Alex Albon – end 2023
Logan Sargeant – end 2023
Kevin Magnussen – end 2023
Nico Hulkenberg – end 2024
Predictions
World Drivers’ Champion: Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen is in imperious form and has been for the last 4 years. Many are touting him to end his career as one of the all-time greats and for good measure. The Ferrari boys will push him further than last year and something tells me that Sergio Perez will also have a bit more of a bite to him this year, but it will be difficult stopping Max from becoming a 3-time world champion.
World Constructors’ Champion: Red Bull Racing
It’s rare that you get consensus within the paddock after pre-season testing, such are the unknowns in terms of how different teams are operating. But as the chequered flag fell on Saturday night there was unanimity over who the team to beat are, and that’s Red Bull.
-Chris Medland, F1 Journalist
Not often is there unanimity in the paddock with regard to the outright frontrunner for the season after testing but here we are. The fastest car and a very well-tuned structure on the pit wall pretty much ensure that Red Bull will be able to fight off any potential challenge from Ferrari for their 2nd consecutive WCC.
Rookie of The Year: Oscar Piastri
The Australian was anyway touted as one of the more exciting prospects to enter the sport in the last few years. His “transfer” saga definitely brought even more eyes on him.
Nyck de Vries is the most experienced of the ‘rookies’ and Logan Sargeant will have constant attention on him just because he will be the only American on the grid, but make no mistake it’s the Australian Piastri who will be under the microscope every race weekend and something tells me he will come good.