It wasn't quite what we saw after the 2023 Formula 1 season, when for the first time in the history of the sport, all 10 teams retained both of their drivers over the offseason and started the 2024 campaign with the exact same lineups with which they ended 2023.
But there still wasn't a ton of driver movement across the grid from 2025 to 2026 following a chaotic silly season the year before.
All things considered, it makes sense; many drivers have contracts due to expire at the end of the 2026 season, which is the first after a regulations overhaul, and drivers and teams are aiming to get a good sense of where things stand in year one of Formula 1's new era. The end of 2025 was not a particularly ideal time to make lineup changes.
Aside from the introduction of Cadillac as an 11th team, which sees the returns of both Sergio Perez, who most recently competed for Red Bull in 2024, and Valtteri Bottas, who most recently competed for Sauber (now Audi) the same year, there were just two driver changes.
One driver has entered the sport, one has switched teams, and one is out of the sport entirely.
1 driver out of Formula 1 after 2025
Unfortunately for Yuki Tsunoda, he's the driver who is off the Formula 1 grid entirely.
Tsunoda entered Formula 1 in 2021 with AlphaTauri (later RB, later Racing Bulls) and remained there through the start of the 2025 season. But with Liam Lawson, Perez's Red Bull replacement, struggling, Tsunoda was promoted from the sister team to the top team after just two races, and Lawson was demoted.
Tsunoda struggled with Red Bull throughout the 2025 season as well, but no further driver changes were made. However, it was announced that he would not be back on the grid in 2026. Although he has long been backed by Honda and Honda has since left Red Bull for Aston Martin, Tsunoda is set to serve as a reserve driver for both Red Bull and Racing Bulls this year.
Isack Hadjar was called up to replace Tsunoda following his own rookie season at Racing Bulls, making him the lone driver to swap teams for 2026, and rookie Arvid Lindblad is set to replace him alongside Lawson, making him the lone true "new" driver on the Formula 1 grid this season.
Apple TV's live coverage of the 2026 Formula 1 season is set to begin with the Australian Grand Prix from Albert Park Circuit at 10:55 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 7.