F1 F1 2024 thread

[The Flying Belgian]

I just don't see them knifing Perez, given that they refused to do so last night. The sponsorship dollars he brings in are just too much for them to refuse, and essentially make him unsackable.

Did Carlos Slim make the money rain down on RBR?

 

[99 Problems]

They're not putting Lawson straight into an RB - he's going to be driving the VCARB next year, alongside Tsunoda.

The VCARB line-up is pretty much settled. The only question is what happens with the 2nd RB seat?

They're obviously willing to accept it, given that they're almost certain to lose the CC this year (to McLaren) - and they still didn't give Perez the shove. Perez allegedly brings in $33M in sponsorship, which basically pays Verstappen's salary. Lose Perez, and they may lose Verstappen as well!

What makes you think that they will see things differently in 2025, compared to now (i.e. the summer break in 2024)?

Do you think their appetite for bad results will change? They're not batting an eyelid at finishing 2nd in the CC this year, so why would they think differently about 2025?

Perez' poor performance rarely impacts Max directly. Yes, it would be nice for him to have a tail gunner occasionally, but Max has rarely needed one - and Perez was rarely in a position to provide it anyway. Max's chance of winning the 2025 WDC rely much more on the car than they do on Perez' support (or lack thereof).

The constructors championship is one thing, him costing Max a WDC isn’t something they will just let slide. If things stayed similar to how they have been recently he would desperately need a teammate capable of taking points off the others.

Lawson might be about to have 10 races in the VCARB and if they went well I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he went into the main team in 2025

 

[my name was taken]

Bummer, would have liked to see anyone else at least have the opportunity to drive against max and challenge for wins.

Ricciardo will probably stay as a sim driver, there will be a lot to do given 2026 cars are having a significant aerodynamics change

Which leads to the question, where will Newey be, if anywhere

 

[Vader]

Did Carlos Slim make the money rain down on RBR?

To the tune of $33M - I assume that's USD.

Essentially, Perez' sponsorship pays Verstappen's salary.

 

[jabba5114]

I don't think he will sign with a team like Sauber, and I don't think Sauber would be particularly interested in him.

I think they will look for a young driver to pair with Hulkenberg.

Ricciardo's only shot was to perform in the VCARB and get promoted to RB. If that's not going to happen (still not off the cards for 2025), he will be done in F1.

I think Sauber/audi will take anyone now.

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[Skull Face]

I think Sauber/audi will take anyone now.

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They are fresh out of quality options the way in stands atm

Mercedes - Antonelli * (Will swap with sainz if merc don't deem him ready at williams)
Alpine - Doohan (Sainz was their only other viable option, no one wants to go there with them basically looking like abandoning their f1 project)
Sauber - Bottas/Zhou/Ricciardo/Perez (Danny ric with 0% chance when siedl was still in charge maybe a slim hope now)

Then there is the red bull / rb lineup which is going to be max, yuki, lawson and either daniel or sergio, lawson vs ricciardo shoot out is on tomorrow if daniel wins he will stay until the end of the year and pray sergio keeps driving shit.

 

[Shifty1]

To the tune of $33M - I assume that's USD.

Essentially, Perez' sponsorship pays Verstappen's salary.

That's the figure I read too. That's some serious money. I believe the prize money drop from 1st to 2nd is around $15-20m US.

 

[Jatz]

Imagine a K-Mag and Max driver pairing at Red Bull

Would be box office

 

[Jatz]

Bummer, would have liked to see anyone else at least have the opportunity to drive against max and challenge for wins.

Ricciardo will probably stay as a sim driver, there will be a lot to do given 2026 cars are having a significant aerodynamics change

Which leads to the question, where will Newey be, if anywhere

Still expect Newey ends up at Ferrari.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Red Bull choosing to kiss the constructors good bye to keep the Mexican fans happy? Unless they can turn that car around post break somehow it is very very hard to see the current line up winning it from here.

Told you all this would happen (for now at least).

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Ricciardo would probably take that, given it's essentially what he was doing in 2023.

I just don't see them knifing Perez, given that they refused to do so last night. The sponsorship dollars he brings in are just too much for them to refuse, and essentially make him unsackable.

Look theres a lot of political stuff going on at RB. Horner, marko, both verstappens..lots of infighting and conflict.

They wont move checo this year (which is why he posted what i did earlier this week) but i can see that changing at years end, particularly if horner goes.

 

[Bradesmaen]

They don't want to move Perez on for say Lawson and then have Lawson struggle next year like they had with Albon and Gasly before.

 

[Iceman!]

They don't want to move Perez on for say Lawson and then have Lawson struggle next year like they had with Albon and Gasly before.

I agree they don't want a rookie in that seat but i think the risk is low if the other option is keeping Perez.

 

[DamoESP]

Word that Liberty media are actually the ones who "convinced" RBR to keep Perez....after the Verstappens were already told he would be replaced over the summer break.

Big OOOFFFTTTT if true.....

 

[King Of Money]

I can still see a world where:

Perez gets the flick at seasons end (regardless of his 25/26 contract - there's likely a clause in there that facilitates this move). I think this is almost certain to happen. The team won't want to go through this BS again next year.

Danny Ric gets the Perez seat. He now has the wood on Tsunoda, and his experience counts for something over Lawson. He also has a very good relationship with Verstappen which can't hurt.

Lawson gets the VCARB seat and more F1 racing experience.

Hadjar steps into Lawsons current role.

How it all plays out during 2025 depends entirely on driver performances. How well does Danny go. How do Lawsons results stack up against Tsunoda.

It gives RIC the chance to prove himself in the 'A' team, Lawson gets his full time seat, and Marko gets forward progress in his junior driver programme.

 

[DamoESP]

RIC is apparently locked in to stay at RB for the rest of the season. Works out perfectly for the scenario King Of Money posted above, especially if Markos words about there being a driver shuffle in 2025 are true

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/ricciardo-stay-rb-after-summer-break-following-red-bull-review/10640470/

 

[happy_eagle]

Word that Liberty media are actually the ones who "convinced" RBR to keep Perez....after the Verstappens were already told he would be replaced over the summer break.

Big OOOFFFTTTT if true.....

This is like a whole new category of pay driver, even by F1 standards.

Lance Stroll: My Dad owns the team
Sergio Perez: Hold my beer.....

 

[King Of Money]

Confirmed Drivers for 2025:

Red Bull: Verstappen, Perez ($$$$ talks)
McLaren: Norris, Piastri
Ferrari: Hamilton, LeClerc
Mercedes: Russell
Aston Martin: Stroll, Alonso
VCARB: Tsunoda
Haas: Ocon, Bearman
Williams: Sainz, Albon
Alpine: Gasly
Sauber: Hulkenberg

That leaves 4 seats unconfirmed, with the following drivers still uncontracted for 2025:

• Ricciardo
• Magnussen
• Sargeant
• Guanyu
• Bottas

Antonelli has been heavily linked to the Mercedes seat, and the option of sending him to Williams is now gone - so I think we can pencil this one in (though not in ink).

There's every indication that VCARB want Lawson in the 2nd seat, which means Ricciardo needs to find a new home, given that Perez' $$$$ have spoken and the Red Bull seat is not up for grabs.

That leaves seats at Alpine & Sauber...

With Sainz making his decision yesterday, we can expect the rest of the dominos to fall fairly quickly.

Jack Doohan - He doesn't seem to get much air-time in driver market discussions.

Any chance for the Alpine seat?

 

[happy_eagle]

Jack Doohan - He doesn't seem to get much air-time in driver market discussions.

Any chance for the Alpine seat?

He'd be a chance, but I wouldn't expect much from him at F1. Not sure he's at the level.

 

[Vader]

Jack Doohan - He doesn't seem to get much air-time in driver market discussions.

Any chance for the Alpine seat?

He's a possibility, though I wouldn't necessarily see him as favourite for the seat.

If DR stays with VCARB/RB, and Bottas signs with Sauber, then he could be seen as a very attractive option for them - better than Magnussen & Sargeant. The big question is how many sponsorship $$$ Zhou Guanyu brings to the party. I'm guessing it could be considerable, given that he's the only Chinese F1 driver on the grid. $$$ could speak volumes to a team like Alpine.

 

[skam85]

Zhou and Kmag are done.

Should VCARB sign Lawson as expected, Bottas now seems to be the defacto favourite for Sauber, based on no other options for either. Otherwise Sauber also are keen on Lawson.

Alpine looks to be between Doohan and Mick Schumacher, with the two having a recent shootout test session.

VCARB will be Lawson, with DR's career now resting on whether Perez is booted or not.

 

[Vader]

So... we know that RB have decided to stick with Checo for the rest of 2024, with VCARB similarly sticking with DR. The big question is WTF will they do for 2025?

Presumably they're sticking with Max & Checo in the RB cars. DR seemingly hasn't done enough in the VCARB to foist Checo from the RB, and Checo's sponsorship $$$ make him almost unsackable.

With Tsunoda's seat locked in via the Honda contract, that leaves one seat and two drivers - DR & Lawson.

If Lawson isn't signed to a VCARB contract by September he becomes a FA. This may or may not mean anything, if all of the other seats are filled by then anyway. Marko is obviously fairly keen to get Lawson into the VCARB car in 2025, and if that happens then DR finds himself without a seat again.

DR surely knows all this... so what is his game plan? Is he hoping they won't put Lawson in the seat in 2025? Is he hoping that Perez has only been given a temporary reprieve, and that his seat is still up for grabs in 2025? Both of those appear long shots to me.

 

[Vader]

Zhou and Kmag are done.

Should VCARB sign Lawson as expected, Bottas now seems to be the defacto favourite for Sauber, based on no other options for either. Otherwise Sauber also are keen on Lawson.

Alpine looks to be between Doohan and Mick Schumacher, with the two having a recent shootout test session.

VCARB will be Lawson, with DR's career now resting on whether Perez is booted or not.

Sargeant & KMag are definitely done.

I suspect the biggest factor with Zhou's future is the amount of Chinese sponsorship he can bring to a team.

 

[Barrybran]

How long is the Mexico GP contract?

 

[Pure_Ownage]

This is like a whole new category of pay driver, even by F1 standards.

Lance Stroll: My Dad owns the team
Sergio Perez: Hold my beer.....

This is one of the problem thesedays with the driver market. Sponsor money matters more than ability.