Beyond the Flag
Fansided

Formula 1: 5 drivers who could be the next champion not named Lewis Hamilton

By Asher Fair

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - OCTOBER 28: Fourth place finisher Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP celebrates winning the 2018 F1 World Drivers Championship by performing donuts during the Formula One Grand Prix of Mexico at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on October 28, 2018 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images)
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - OCTOBER 28: Fourth place finisher Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP celebrates winning the 2018 F1 World Drivers Championship by performing donuts during the Formula One Grand Prix of Mexico at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on October 28, 2018 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
6 of 6
Next
SUZUKA, JAPAN – OCTOBER 05: Esteban Ocon of France driving the (31) Sahara Force India F1 Team VJM11 Mercedes (Photo by Charles Coates/Getty Images)
SUZUKA, JAPAN – OCTOBER 05: Esteban Ocon of France driving the (31) Sahara Force India F1 Team VJM11 Mercedes (Photo by Charles Coates/Getty Images) /

Esteban Ocon

Racing Point Force India’s Esteban Ocon has confirmed that he will not return to Force India in the 2019 season, as he will likely be replaced by Lance Stroll, whose father Lawrence led a consortium and purchased the team, then named Sahara Force India, after the backers of Ocon’s teammate Sergio Perez sent the team into administration to protect them from the threat of a winding-up order.

More from Formula One

The 22-year-old Frenchman could potentially end up driving for Williams Racing, which have been by far the slowest of the 10 teams on the grid this season, next year, but this is still far from a sure thing, as there are several other drivers who are currently being considered as the team’s second driver.

Nevertheless, Ocon is a member of the Mercedes driver development program who many people believe has the talent and the potential to become a Formula 1 champion. His success in his two seasons driving for Force India has demonstrated this talent and potential firsthand, so even if he ends up without a ride for next year, it isn’t like he will be seen as someone who has never driven in Formula 1 before when it comes to him potentially landing a ride with Mercedes in the future.

Mercedes executive director Toto Wolff is a big fan of Ocon, and justifiably so. As a result, it would not be surprising to see Ocon named the replacement for either Lewis Hamilton or Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes regardless of whether or not he ends up driving for Williams next year.

At this point, driving for Williams wouldn’t really help Ocon anyway, so it would be foolish to consider him out of the long-term picture as a potential Mercedes driver if he ends up without a ride for the 2019 season.

dark. Next. Top 10 Formula 1 drivers of all-time

Who will be the next driver not named Lewis Hamilton to win a Formula 1 championship? Will that driver be one of the five drivers who are discussed in this article? If so, will it be Sebastian Vettel, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, Valtteri Bottas or Esteban Ocon? If not, who will it be?

Home/Formula One