Since posting that I have read an article by the highly respected F1 scribe of many decades Joe Saward. He has some intresting thoughts covering many drivers and teams. However, he seems to be on the same page as me in terms of Audi and Sainz / Hulkenberg.
Following in an extract from a much longer article. Prior to this in the article he was talking of Zhou and how he would like to see Zhou stay. He talks of all the major teams as well, and insider info that suggests there are moves afoot to have Antonelli in a Williams for Imola.... giving Sargeant a US Swansong at Miami.
The hiccup to that is that Antonelli is still only 17 years old. After Max joined F1 the FIA tightened the rules requiring any driver to be 18 before being granted an FIA Superlicense. He turns 18 in August. Apparently he already has the required points for an SL, just not the years. Personally I think it is too soon, just 3 or 4 races into F2 having jumped to that category from F4 and regional open wheeler stuff. Yes he has impressed in testing F1 cars of late and has many for tests with Mercedes 2022 car lined up so Mercedes are keen.
Of course the Antonelli hysteria compromises Carlos ambitions at Mercedes.
Anyway the Saward article.... a worthwhile read.
......I hope that he (Zhou) is still around in F1 in 2025 as I think he deserves more given that the team has not been very good in recent years and this has held him back.
Still, dreams (even Hollywood ones) cannot always overcome harsh realities and it is clear that Audi has much bigger plans now that it has taken over the Sauber team. Having said that, there is no sign of any action at the moment and if there are Audi people about, they are pretty invisible…
Still, the German marque is busy in the driver market, trying to pin down some star names for the future. It is clear that the likes of Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg (the two top choices for Audi) do not wish to be pinned down this early – as there are bigger and better drives possible. The driver market is currently held up because Mercedes wants to try to lure Max Verstappen away from Red Bull Racing and because Red Bull is not making any decision about Sergio Perez. The chances are that Max will not leave Red Bull until he has seen what the engine situation is after the 2026 season. Alonso has signed for Aston Martin because he did not get enough interest from Mercedes or Red Bull and thus jumped early to ensure a seat for years to come.
Red Bull is thinking: “Why change something that works?” Perez is doing a better job this year, even if the cynics say that Sergio always wakes up at contract time. The amusing reality is that it is probably best for Red Bull NOT to sign Sergio until the end of the year, so he keeps up his current performance and does not go off the boil once he has a contract in the bag.
Sainz might be a better option in terms of performance, but Carlos is a different character and much more political (so they say). There is also the question of 2026 and beyond as Red Bull seem to be pretty keen on securing Alex Albon for the future. Williams would like to keep the Anglo-Thai for longer and he might be tempted to stay on if the team builds a better car, but he may be keen on Red Bull because if Max leaves Albon could become the team leader.
Audi is offering Carlos a lot of money and thus he must decide whether he wants performance or cash. But what he would like is time to make a decision and Audi does not want to give him that. It is the same with Hulkenberg. Audi is pushing but he is still not sure. Drivers are there to win races. Money follows success. So Audi really needs to get things moving before trying to catch big stars in their butterfly nets.
Mercedes has a different problem. The team is currently assessing whether it’s a good idea to put its prodigy Andrea Kimi Antonelli into Lewis Hamilton’s seat in 2025. The 17-year-old Italian recently spent two days testing a 2021 Mercedes W12 in Austria and a string of further tests is planned in the weeks ahead with a 2022 W13. The team seems keen to promote Antonelli but is worried that this might be too big a step and that it would be better for him to get some time in a smaller team before joining Mercedes in 2026. Antonelli could be loaned out to Williams, which is looking for a driver right now. Williams would take Antonelli if they could have him for 18 months, but the problem is that he is not old enough to get a superlicence until August 25th, when he turns 18. Williams might try asking the FIA for a dispensation, given that Max Verstappen was fine when he entered F1 at the age of 17, and if a youngster has what it takes then he should be allowed in. This is a fair argument.
There is a lot of value in F1 getting a new rising star, particularly one from Italy. It’s a positive story – and the FIA could use a few of them at the moment. Refusal would be another negative story about the federation. If Antonelli did get a dispensation, he would be in the Williams at Imola on May 19, the perfect place for a Bolognese driver to make his F1 debut.
Logan Sargeant would get to race in front of his home crowd in Miami before being let go… This might all sound brutal, but F1 is about excellence – Top Gun, the elite, the best of the best – and Sargeant has had plenty of chances. I think Williams has been fair with him and has really wanted him to succeed – because an American F1 driver would be great news for the team and for the sport. The problem is that the battle for points this year is cut-throat.
If you want the full article.
https://joesaward.wordpress.com/2024/04 ... nsylvania/
