The world of F1 driver contracts is a mystical and secretive place where even the most water tight of deals may become not what both parties expected. This year Mercedes took the unusual step of awarding Lewis Hamilton and George Russell both two year extensions meaning they are both out of contract at the same time.

Having announced the two deals, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff was asked whether he was concerned about whether both his drivers could opt to leave the team at the same time.

 

 

Mercedes driver contracts run parallel

Wolff insisted: “No, we have different structures of contracts, also because George has been with us since he was a junior.

“But I believe in the fact that if it is beneficial for both parties… you need to make a quick car and you need a quick driver, and I do it like a very famous football coach once told me: ‘if a good player wants to go elsewhere, don’t stop him going elsewhere’.”

Whilst the ‘Toto speak’ failed to address the problem the team may have trying to recruit two new drivers simultaneously, he clearly believes the pull Mercedes have would make this no problem.

“When someone wants to move, either the team or the driver, then you have just got to move,” Toto concluded.

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F1 drivers contracts historically shorter

In the modern world of Formula One drivers now stay with teams far longer than in the ruthless days or yore, where vine winning a world championship did not guarantee your future with an F1 team.

Damon Hill was firmly on the way to winning the 1996 Formula 1 world championship for Williams when the shock news broke that team boss Frank Williams was axing his fellow Brit the following season in favour of Heinz-Harald Frentzen.

Alain Prost ditched his contract wit McLaren after driving alongside Ayrton Senna for the 1988-89 seasons despite the Woking team looking set to win more titles. McLaren went on to win again in 1990-91, while Prost became the first driver to move to Ferrari after the death of its founder Enzo.

Whilst Lewis Hamilton has kept his contractual arrangements with Mercedes on a short term basis over the even years he has driven for the team, others have redefined the notion of a multi-year deal signing five year contracts with teams that have no recent history of winning championships.

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Leclerc new five year deal

Both Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc are currently retained by McLaren and Ferrari respectively for five seasons, though whilst Norris has two more years to run on his deal, Leclerc is out of contract at the end of 2024.

La Gazzetta broke the news yesterday that Ferrari had agreed a new five year deal with Leclerc which included a break clause in 2027, should the Scuderia fail to deliver the Monegasque with a car capable of winning the drivers’ title.

Meanwhile the news form Italy is Ferrari are only offering Carlos Sainz a one year extension which would see him become a free agent for the new big rule changes in 2026. This is obviously a slap in the face for the Spaniard who has competed well with Ferrari’s favourite son.

Leclerc came through the junior formula as part of the Ferrari driver academy, whilst Sainz was a product of Dr. Helmut Marko’s sharp eye. In their three years together in Maranello, Leclerc has finished ahead in the championship twice and completed five Grand Prix victories to the Spaniard’s two.

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Ferrari ‘over confident’ they’ll get Norris

Yet in 2023 it was Sainz who delivered the only win for the Scuderia with his calculated drive in Singapore using the DRS to help Lando Norris behind him stay ahead of the charging Mercedes duo.

Leclerc now has the dubious honour of being the F1 driver who in history has there most pole positions (23) without winning a drivers’ championship and he was fortunate to finish the season ahead of his team mate, mostly due to the drain cover debacle he suffered in FP1 at the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Charles though trounced Sainz in the qualifying head to head this year, winning the battle by a score of 15-7.

Yet Ferrari’s attitude towards Carlos Sainz appears somewhat strange. The reason given for offering the Spaniard just a one year extension is reportedly to open the door for the team to recruit Lando Norris for 2026 when his current deal with McLaren expires.

However logical this may appear, Ferrari are taking a risk and must believe their pulling power has been untarnished by the fact they’ve failed to win either F1 championship for now fifteen years.

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Red Bull admit relationship with Lando

Further, last year Christian Horner revealed he has twice made contact with Lando Norris with a view to him driving for Red Bull joking, “We’ve talked to Lando a couple of times over the years, but every time we’ve had a conversation, he’s signed a contract with McLaren the next day.”

Rumours abounded during the European F1 season that Sergio Perez was on his way out of Red Bull and for a time it was Norris who was the centre of media speculation as the driver to replace the Mexican.

When asked about the possibility of racing alongside Verstappen in the coming years, wherever that may be, Norris said: “It’s definitely something I would be open to in the future.

“I think I can happily say Max is probably one of the best drivers ever in the history of F1. I never raced against him until I was in F1.

“I think no matter what car he’s in, he’ll be able to perform at a similar level. Maybe with different results, but at a similar level, and I think at that point it’d be great to work alongside someone like that. At the same time, to see where I can really stand against him. I’d be open to it,” Norris revealed.

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Horner admires “great driver” Norris

It would seem both Christian Horner and Lando Norris are open about some kind of future link up where the British driver takes his seat alongside Max Verstappen.

As the rumours swirled about Norris replacing Perez, the Red Bull boss revealed to Sky F1 this year he is keeping his eye on the Briths driver.

“Lando is a great driver. I mean, he’s a big talent, big personality, and of course, he’s one of those drivers that you keep an eye on.

“But there’s many drivers that you keep an eye on as well. There’s a generation of drivers out there at the moment that have got a huge amount of talent.”

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Audi rumours for Sainz will grow

Horner then cautioned that anyone might find Verstappen a difficult team mate, as Perez did during 2023.

“Now being Max’s team-mate is never going to be easy, and some drivers may be up for that challenge, some may not be,” he concluded.

So given the communications history between Red Bull and Lando Norris, Ferrari appear optimistic they could pry him from the world champion’s grasp. Should they fail in capturing there McLaren driver to replace Sainz, at present the market for a ready made driver capable of winning races looks somewhat bare.

Sainz looks a solid option for Ferrari in the foreseeable future, but should they fail to secure his services for 2026 in the current round of talks, the rumours he will leave for the newly formed Audi team will surely take on even more credibility.

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Ferrari lack faith in their driver academy

Other possibilities for Ferrari of course include Norris’ rookie team mate – Oscar Piastri – who acquitted himself well this season, even claiming pole position and winning a Sprint race in Qatar.

True F1 stars tend to make their mark during their first season, as did Lewis Hamilton for McLaren, Sebastian Vettel when at Toro Ross, Charles Leclerc at Sauber and Max Verstappen in his junior Red Bull days.

The young Mclaren Aussie driver looks to be in the kind of league that Leclerc and Norris were after a year in F1 and could be the backup plan for Ferrari should the ‘love in’ with Red Bull never happened for Lando.

As for Red Bull two years is a long time given they’ve declared their hand offering Tsunoda a fourth season and re-recruiting Daniel Ricciardo. The have Liam Lawson in the wings who in his five Grand Prix this year performed incredibly well, scoring two points even before the AlphaTauri received its best upgrade of the year.

Ferrari clearly lack faith in their own driver academy and their F2 drivers Arthur Leclerc and Oliver Bearman have a long way to go before they could even be considered F1 material and a risk Ferrari feels worth taking.

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