12 F1 Rumours To Watch Out For During The Summer Break
Formula One is currently in the summer break marking the half way point of the 2023 season, and with multiple driver contracts due to expire at the end of the year 'silly season' rumours are in full swing.
We have already had some announcements prior to the summer break, including F1 rookie Nyck de Vries losing his AlphaTauri seat and the huge shake-up at Alpine which has seen team principal Otmar Szafnauer leave the team after the Belgian Grand Prix.
Here is a round-up of all of the 'silly season' rumours to date listed by driver and team principal.
Drivers
Sergio Perez
Sergio Perez has been at the centre of the majority of driver contract rumours. Although the Mexican driver is in contract with Red Bull until the end of 2024, he has struggled to keep up with his teammate, two-time champion Max Verstappen, sparking rumours of his dismissal.
De Vries' AlphaTauri exit only fuelled these rumours more for two reasons, it demonstrated the cut-throat world of the Red Bull family and, the Dutch driver was replaced with Daniel Ricciardo which no doubt added pressure on Perez. Many are of the opinion that the Australian driver was brought back to AlphaTauri to prepare him for Red Bull should Perez not find improvements.
There have been questions over whether Perez will be replaced for 2024, cutting his contract off one year early. Red Bull team chief Christian Horner and motorsport advisor Helmut Marko have remained adamant that Perez's seat is safe until the end of his current contract, acknowledging that it is difficult to be Verstappen's teammate.
Rumours of replacements in 2025 have included Ricciardo, current AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda, Mick Schumacher, Nico Hulkenberg, Alex Albon, and Lando Norris.
Daniel Ricciardo
As mentioned, Ricciardo was brought in mid-season to replace de Vries. The eight-time grand prix winner lost his seat with McLaren at the end of the 2022 season and eventually signed with Red Bull as their third driver for 2023 after not being able to find a suitable full-time seat.
Ricciardo's return has fuelled rumours of him replacing Sergio Perez in Red Bull and reuniting with Verstappen. The 'Honey Badger' raced for Toro Rosso (now AlphaTauri) back in 2012-2013 before moving to Red Bull in 2014 where he stayed until 2018. Ricciardo has explained publicly that his goal is to move back up to Red Bull which is where he would like to stay until the end of his F1 career.
Nico Hulkenberg
Nico Hulkenberg returned to a full-time F1 seat at the beginning of the year, signing a one-year contract with Haas. The American team have not yet confirmed a contract extension for the German driver but are said to be keen on finalising this. However, there have still been rumours of a move for Hulkenberg.
He has put in some great performances so far this year and has outperformed his teammate, Kevin Magnussen, so it is no doubt other teams would be interested in Hulkenberg. Just this last weekend, he was seen entering the Red Bull team's hospitality at the Belgian Grand Prix leaving fans wondering if there could be a move to Red Bull or AlphaTauri in the future.
Former driver Timo Glock analysed Hulkenberg's position, explaining to Speedweek:
“I think he will still be driving with Haas next year because there is no other option.
"After that, I’m sure that the teams have him on the radar, for example, Aston Martin. Mike Krack saw what Nico Hülkenberg can do in the car without any preparation and how he drives at the moment. He’s definitely on the list and I trust him to be able to show everything in a top team.”
Charles Leclerc
Although Charles Leclerc is in contract with Ferrari until the end of 2024, there has been word of the Monegasque driver already signing a two-year extension with the Maranello-based squad with the option of a third year. It is no surprise that Ferrari would want to lock Leclerc in, especially with the rumours of him potentially replacing Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes when he retires in the future.
There has also been speculation of Leclerc joining the Red Bull family. This has all stemmed from the difficulties that Ferrari has faced during 2022 and so far during 2023. Leclerc was pinned as a championship contender during 2022 but after some driver errors, insane strategical mistakes, and reliability issues, he was quickly put out of the running.
Fans can often hear Leclerc exasperated over the team radio, further sparking rumours of the move. Despite this, Leclerc has often confirmed that his dream has always been to drive for Ferrari and is loyal to the team.
Carlos Sainz
It has been reported that Carlos Sainz, Leclerc's Ferrari teammate, is set to sign the same 2+3 year deal with the Prancing Horse. The Spanish driver is also in contract until the end of 2024, but the team seem eager to sort the extension early.
Sainz has been rumoured to move to Audi in 2026 when the German manufacturer joins the grid with Sauber. Sainz has since put these rumours down, saying:
“But I know by fact that right now, I’m not talking with anyone else that is not Ferrari.”
Lance Stroll
Lance Stroll is a name that doesn't often come up in contract discussions due to his father being a major shareholder in Aston Martin and the Aston Martin F1 team. However, just this week Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft has alluded to Stroll not staying in the sport for much longer.
Fans have often called for the driver to be replaced on the team in which he drives alongside two-time champion Fernando Alonso, despite Stroll putting in some great performances in the early stages of the 2023 season.
Croft explained on the Sky Sports F1 podcast:
“I want to see the Lance Stroll back that turned up in Bahrain, because I think he’s lost his way a little bit.
“I think he’s lost his mojo, and whatever’s happened, Lance just doesn’t seem to be as motivated now as he was at the start of the season.
“I do wonder, he’s the one driver on the grid that you think: ‘You’re guaranteed a job as long as your dad is there’, and we’ve never actually talked about contracts for Lance Stroll.
“We’ve never looked at his future elsewhere, but I just have a little feeling that in about a year and a half’s time, Lance Stroll will race his last race in Formula 1 and go off and do something else."
Yuki Tsunoda
AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda had previously been pinned as a potential to move up to Red Bull after Sergio Perez's contract comes to an end in 2025. However, it was recently confirmed that Honda will be partnering up with Aston Martin in 2026 when Red Bull will use their own Red Bull Powertrains.
The Japanese driver has strong connections to Honda so this has inevitably sparked rumours of a move to Aston Martin, which coincides with the speculation of Stroll leaving the team. Although Fernando Alonso has just turned 42, there are no signs of him stopping, but there is the possibility of Tsunoda replacing the Spanish driver should he decide to retire.
Lando Norris
Lando Norris has the second longest contract on the grid behind Max Verstappen. The Belgian-British driver is in contract with McLaren until the end of 2025 but has been rumoured to have signed a 'pre-contract' with Ferrari for when this expires.
This has not been confirmed by either party and Norris remains adamant that he is keen to stick with McLaren, where he has been since his debut in 2019.
Oscar Piastri
Oscar Piastri is proving his spot on the grid during his F1 rookie season. He is currently in eleventh position in the drivers' standings with 34 points. Interest in the Australian driver from other teams is clearly going to increase, and although he is in a two-year contract with McLaren, he has been rumoured to be a future teammate of Max Verstappen replacing Sergio Perez at Red Bull in 2025.
Despite the rumours, Piastri has squashed them for now. He told media during the Belgian Grand Prix:
"It's flattering to have those comments. I'm very happy where I am."
Team Principals
Otmar Szafnauer
It was confirmed last week that Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer had been dismissed from the role along with sporting director Alan Permane, who had been with the team for 34 years.
It didn't take long for rumours to start of where Szafnauer would go next. The former team chief had been seen visiting the Aston Martin guest house during the Belgian Grand Prix weekend sparking speculation of a return to the team in some capacity.
On top of this, F1 journalist Joe Saward has predicted Szafnauer will join an American outfit, either Ford who is joining up with Red Bull Powertrains in 2026 or Andretti Cadillac who are trying to join the grid. Saward wrote:
"It does not take long for speculation to begin in F1 and already there is talk of Otmar Szafnauer being likely to turn up with an American organisation bound for F1.
"This makes sense to some extent, as Szafnauer grew up in Detroit and before joining British American Racing back in 1998 he was employed for 12 years by the Ford Motor Company, running its US motorsport programmes.
"Rival GM might also benefit from someone who knows F1 inside out as the current F1 project is under the leadership of Dr Eric Warren, who has a background in NASCAR where he was employed by Richard Childress Racing Richard Petty Motorsport, Ray Evernham, Michael Waltrip and Penske with only one limited spell in open-wheeler racing in 2009 when he spent some time as head of aerodynamics at US F1, the team that made a lot of noise but never happened."
Mattia Binotto
As the news from Alpine was released, the rumour mill was set off once again with speculation that former Ferrari team chief Mattia Binotto would take Szafnauer's place.
Binotto left the Ferrari team at the end of 2022 and is currently on garden leave for a period of twelve months. There have also been rumours of the former team chief making a move to Audi in 2026, however, this has also not been confirmed.