Which drivers have been confirmed to drive for which teams and which drivers are speculated to drive for which teams in the 2019 Formula 1 season?
To say that this year’s Formula 1 silly season has been a crazy one would be an understatement. After all, just two of the 20 drivers currently driving in the sport entered the 2018 season with contracts that extend beyond the conclusion of the season.
A total of seven more drivers have since signed contracts to drive through at least the 2019 season, of whom only three have signed contracts to continue driving for the teams for which they currently drive.
Of the four drivers who have signed contracts to drive for teams for which they do not currently drive, three currently compete in Formula 1 and one currently competes in Formula 2.
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So far, there have been a total of nine driver confirmations for the 20 seats among the sport’s 10 teams for the 2019 season. Meanwhile, the other 11 seats are still open, although it is fairly certain that certain drivers are poised to drive for certain teams next year.
That said, there are still some driver lineup situations that are fairly uncertain among the speculated scenarios. But before we look at the speculated situations, both those that are certain to some extent and those that are not, let’s have a look at the confirmed driver lineups for next year.
Here are the confirmed driver lineups for the 2019 Formula 1 season.
Confirmed
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport
- Lewis Hamilton (returning)
- Valtteri Bottas (returning)
Scuderia Ferrari
- Sebastian Vettel (returning)
Aston Martin Red Bull Racing
- Max Verstappen (returning)
- Pierre Gasly (from Toro Rosso)
Renault Sport
- Nico Hulkenberg (returning)
- Daniel Ricciardo (from Red Bull Racing)
McLaren
- Carlos Sainz Jr. (from Renault)
- Lando Norris (no previous Formula 1 experience — from Carlin in Formula 2)
Here are the remaining speculated driver lineups for the 2019 Formula 1 season.
Speculated
Scuderia Ferrari
- Charles Leclerc (from Sauber) – fairly certain
Haas
- Kevin Magnussen (returning) – almost 100% certain
- Romain Grosjean (returning) – fairly certain
Racing Point Force India
- Sergio Perez (returning) – almost 100% certain
- Lance Stroll (from Williams) – almost 100% certain
Scuderia Toro Rosso
- Dan Ticktum (no previous Formula 1 experience — from Motopark in Formula 3) – not certain but likely
- Esteban Ocon (from Force India) – very much uncertain
Alfa Romeo Sauber
- Marcus Ericsson (returning) – almost 100% certain
- Antonio Giovinazzi (no previous full-time Formula 1 experience — Sauber test driver) – not certain but likely
Williams Martini Racing
- Sergey Sirotkin (returning) – almost 100% certain
- George Russell (no previous Formula 1 experience — from ART Grand Prix in Formula 3) – very much uncertain
Here is a list of other notable drivers who are not included in any projected driver lineups for the 2019 Formula 1 season.
Other notable drivers
Other notable drivers seeking rides for 2019: Stoffel Vandoorne (McLaren), Robert Kubica (Williams test driver)
Drivers retiring after 2018: Fernando Alonso (McLaren)
Driver likely to retire after 2018: Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
Which drivers will fill up the remaining 11 seats on the grid for the 2019 Formula 1 season? Will the drivers listed in this article land in the seats in which they are projected to land next year? If not, will any drivers replace any of the drivers on this list, or will drivers simply switch places among teams?