No. 10 – Red Bull (Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez)
After finally finding their championship wingman to Max Verstappen, Red Bull can only be happy with their acquisition of Sergio Perez following his finale-defining demonstration of why he is known as the “Mexican Minister of Defense”.
Running eye-popping alternate strategies in conjunction with Verstappen, Perez has more than once been in the position to interfere with championship rival Lewis Hamilton, and he displayed impressive pace by the standards of a Red Bull number two driver, acclimating to an infamously tricky car.
Now entering a second season alongside the Dutch starling, the two look to operate in similar roles for the profit of the team as a whole. There have also been concerns about Checo’s adaptation to the car relative to Verstappen, according to Dr. Helmut Marko, likely again making the car a one-driver tailored creation from the brilliant mind of Adrian Newey.
No. 9 – Alfa Romeo (Valtteri Bottas, Guanyu Zhou)
Having come from a stable relationship between Ferrari junior Antonio Giovinazzi and Ferrari veteran Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo plummet into an unknown dynamic between Chinese rookie Guanyu Zhou and an iteration of Valtteri Bottas which will be looking to finally displace five years of frustration onto the midfield. Despite the projected hunger of Bottas, there is genuine doubt as to whether the teammates will have the opportunity to come to blows.
Having only finished third in the 2021 Formula 2 championship, Zhou displayed enough pace to rightfully earn his seat in Formula 1, but by no means should he be expected to light the world of motorsport on fire in his debut campaign. Alongside a grizzled veteran with something to prove, Zhou may struggle to even put himself in position to challenge his teammate on Sundays.
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