Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was unseated before this year even began by the news that seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton would be joining to team up alongside Charles Leclerc. Sainz took significant time to evaluate his options, as the pieces of the driver market puzzle began to move into place.

The Spaniard was not a consideration in place of Hamilton at Mercedes, and with no vacancy at former team Red Bull Racing, Sainz faced two realistic options: a development project at Williams Racing under James Vowles, or switch to Sauber which will transition to become the factory Audi F1 team when new regulations are introduced in 2026.

Sainz put his faith in a Williams resurgence, and will race alongside Alex Albon, making it one of the quickest driver combinations on the grid. The team will now face the pressure of providing both drivers with the car to match their expectations and talent ahead of the 2026 rules overhaul.

Speaking at the time, Sainz said: “My decision was a lot more based on the people and the feeling that I was getting from talking to the management, talking to the owners and the feeling that I was getting from the whole organisation, and not so much about the short-term performance gains that they were getting.

“And definitely what convinced me more than the downforce they were going to add or where the team was going to be in six months [or] one [year’s] time, was the people and the professionalism and the vision of the project that they had.”

Sauber did eventually find their driver, as German veteran F1 racer Nico Hulkenberg will switch to the Swiss team from Haas. Hulkenberg will step into the racing boots at the team vacated by Valtteri Bottas, and team up alongside rookie Gabriel Bortoleto, who replaces Chinese driver Zhou Guanyu.

Hulkenberg’s significant experience will help Sauber in 2025, and as a German driver will also suit the Audi marque for 2026 ahead of the manufacturer joining as both a constructor and power unit supplier.

Hulkenberg’s replacement at Haas will be Frenchman Esteban Ocon. The 28-year-old, who departed Alpine after the Qatar race, will join British driver Oliver Bearman in an new-look Haas line-up. Ocon was replaced by Jack Doohan for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix ahead of his full season with the French team next year.

Bearman, however, is looking to impress in his first full-time season following three excellent stand-in appearances this season. The 19-year-old is of different character to both Ocon and Gasly, but will still provide a stern challenge to Ocon which could help propel the team’s fortunes after a far more successful 2024 season under new team boss Ayao Komatsu.