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2025 Formula 1 Grid Overview

The 20-car grid for the 2025 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season is officially set. It comes nearly two weeks after the conclusion of a competitive 2024 season that featured seven different competitors achieving at least one Grand Prix victory throughout the 24-race schedule, five teams finishing within 77 points of one another in the midfield region and a season-ending split celebration of the driver’s and constructor’s titles between two championship-winning teams.

Within the 20-car grid for the 2025 season, three-tenths of the field will feature competitors who are set to embark on maiden full-time F1 campaigns. In addition, half of the entries will be occupied by new names as a bevy of familiar faces are set to embark on new beginnings with new teams to call home for next season. Lastly, all but two of the current 10 teams on the grid will feature at least one new name to their driver roster when a new season of racing commences.

McLaren

The team that currently reigns supreme among the remaining nine is the McLaren Formula 1 Team, which will retain its current driver lineup featuring Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri for a second consecutive season. Dubbed the second-best organization in F1, the papaya-colored team capped off the 2024 season as the top organization on the grid as it achieved its ninth constructor’s championship by 14 points over Ferrari. The championship, which was a first for McLaren since 1998, comes amid career-best years for Norris and Piastri, both of whom notched multiple Grand Prix victories throughout the season and notched a combined 666 points despite Norris falling short of claiming the driver’s championship by 63 points.

Norris, a native of Bristol, England, who is coming off his sixth consecutive season as a McLaren F1 competitor, notched his maiden four Grand Prix victories that commenced by winning at Miami in May before he proceeded to win at the Netherlands in August, Singapore in September and the season-finale Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in December. He also recorded career-high stats in poles (eight), podiums (13), laps led (271), average-finishing result (4.3) and points (374). Meanwhile, teammate Piastri, a native of Melbourne, Australia, is coming off a second F1 campaign with McLaren as he notched his maiden two Grand Prix victories, where the first occurred at Hungary in July before he won at Azerbaijan nearly two months later. Piastri would also rack up eight podiums, an average-finishing result of 5.1, 292 points and a fourth-place result in the final driver’s standings.

As for the future, Norris inked a multi-year contract extension with McLaren this past January while Piastri inked a multi-year contract extension in September 2023 that would keep him at the team through the 2026 season. Both enter the 2025 season with goals to defend McLaren’s constructor’s title and deliver the first driver’s championship for the team since 2008.

Ferrari

Despite ending up one points position shy of claiming a record 17th constructor’s title with a combined points tally of 652, the Scuderia Ferrari HP team scored a big silly season victory before the start of the 2024 season by acquiring seven-time champion Sir Lewis Hamilton to its driver roster for the 2025 season. Hamilton, a native of Stevenage, England, who initially signed a two-year contract extension to remain at the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team through the 2025 season in August 2023, ended up exercising a break clause in his contract by signing up for Ferrari on a multi-year basis this past February, which made the 2024 season his final campaign with Mercedes.

Hamilton’s move to Ferrari will mark his maiden F1 campaign with a team that is not affiliated with Mercedes. This past season also marked Hamilton’s conclusion of a 12-year dynasty with Mercedes, a team where Hamilton won six of his record-tying seven driver’s championships and 84 of his current 105 Grand Prix race victories, including two in 2024 at Silverstone and Belgium. The pair of victories this past season also marked Hamilton’s first trips to the top of the podium since 2021. Amid the victories, he ended up in seventh place in the 2024 standings with 223 points, five podiums and an average-finishing result of 7.0.

For the 2025 season, Hamilton, who continues his pursuit for a record eighth championship, will compete alongside new teammate Charles Leclerc, the latter of whom has been competing with the prancing horse organization since 2019 and inked a contract extension this past January to remain with the team beyond the 2024 season. This past season generated a strong season for Leclerc, a native of Monte Carlo who notched three Grand Prix victories (Monaco, Monza and Austin), a career-high 13 podiums and career-best average-finishing result of 4.5, which was enough to settle in third place in the driver’s standings with a career-high 356 points despite falling short of his maiden F1 title by 81 points. Both Hamilton and Leclerc will attempt to deliver the first driver’s and constructor’s titles for Ferrari since the 2007 and 2008 seasons, respectively, in 2025.

Red Bull Racing

The 2024 F1 season generated mixed results for Oracle Red Bull Racing, an organization that swept both the driver’s and constructor’s championships over the previous three seasons and had won all but one of the 22-race schedule in 2023. The good news for the organization was that Max Verstappen, a native of Hasselt, Belgium, managed to defend his series’ title for a fourth consecutive season as he also notched a season-high nine Grand Prix victories. Verstappen’s victories throughout this past season occurred at Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Japan, China, Italy’s Emilia Romagna, Canada, Spain, São Paulo and Qatar. Amid Verstappen’s fourth consecutive championship-winning season, the organization dropped to third place in the final constructor’s standings and was unable to reclaim the team title by 77 points.

With a combined constructor points total of 589, 437 of the points were contributed by Verstappen, the latter of whom also notched a total of 14 podiums, while the remaining 152 were recorded by Sergio “Checo” Perez. Compared to his previous three seasons at Red Bull, Perez, a native of Guadalajara, Mexico, endured a difficult 2024 season where he went winless for the first time since 2019, finished on the podium four times and recorded an average-finishing result of 9.6, the latter category of which was his lowest since 2019. Perez settled in eighth place in the driver’s standings after being outscored by teammate Verstappen and after he struggling to keep pace to run up front for the majority of the season.

Despite inking a two-year extension to remain at Red Bull this past June, Perez would depart the organization on December 18. Currently, Perez, who first competed in F1 in 2011 and is the winningest Mexican competitor in F1 with six through 281 career starts, remains uncertain of his racing plans for next season. A day after Perez’s exit, Red Bull announced the promotion of Liam Lawson to partner alongside Verstappen, the latter of whom is under contract with the team through 2028. Lawson, a native of Hastings, New Zealand, who spent the previous three seasons as a reserve driver for both Red Bull Racing and the Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team, also spent the previous two making a total of 11 starts for the latter organization, where he has notched three ninth-place results. He will become the 13th competitor overall to compete in an F1 Grand Prix event while representing Red Bull as both he and Verstappen strive to return the team atop the standings in both the driver’s and constructor’s categories.

Mercedes

With the departure of Sir Lewis Hamilton, the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team has elevated newcomer Andrea Kimi Antonelli to pilot Hamilton’s Mercedes entry for the 2025 season. Antonelli, a former champion in Italian F4 and Formula Regional’s European and Middle East series from Bologna, Italy, spent this past season competing in Formula 2 for Prema Racing, where he notched two victories and finished in sixth place in the standings. Having first joined Mercedes’ Junior Team in 2019 upon winning multiple events and titles in karts, Antonelli also participated in his first pair of free practice sessions in F1 at Italy and Mexico City midway into the 2024 season in preparation for the 2025 season, where he is set to become the sixth competitor to compete for Mercedes since the brand returned as a constructor in 2010 and the first Italian Grand Prix competitor since Antonio Giovinazzi competed in 2021.

For his maiden F1 campaign, Antonelli will compete alongside George Russell, a native of King’s Lynn, England, who first joined Mercedes in 2022 and whose contract with the Silver Arrows organization runs through the conclusion of the 2025 season. After achieving his maiden Grand Prix victory at São Paulo in late 2022 before going winless in 2023 along with the Mercedes team, Russell rebounded by notching two Grand Prix victories in 2024 (Austria in June and Las Vegas in November). To go along with four podiums, four poles, a career-best average-finishing result of 5.6 and a career-high 138 laps led, he settled in sixth place in this past season’s standings with 245 points. He also contributed to Mercedes settling in fourth place in last year’s constructor’s standings with 468 points overall as the organization strives to return atop the standings in both the driver’s and constructor’s regions since the early years of the 2020’s era.

Aston Martin Aramco

For a third consecutive season, the Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team will retain its current driver roster that consists of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, both of whom notched a combined 94 points and contributed to the team settling in fifth place in the constructor’s standings for a second consecutive season.

Alonso, a two-time F1 champion from Oviedo, Spain, is coming off his 21st season in competition, where he recorded an average-finishing result of 10.2, 70 points and settled in ninth place in the final standings. Despite recording zero podiums in 2024 compared to eight during his first season with Aston Martin in 2023 that was capped off with a fourth-place result in the driver’s standings, Alonso scratched his name off of the silly season picture by inking a multi-year contract extension with Aston Martin this past April that would keep him with the team through the 2026 season. Two months later, Stroll, a native of Montreal, Canada, who has been competing with the organization since 2019, inked a contract extension for himself to remain with the team through the 2026 season. Like teammate Alonso, Stroll is coming off a quiet 2024 campaign where he recorded an average-finishing result of 13.1 and 24 points, which relegated him to 13th place in the 2024 standings a year after ending up in 10th place.

With Aston Martin recruiting Red Bull’s longtime global chief technical officer and designer Adrian Newey as its new managing technical partner, both Alonso and Stroll also continue to pursue the first championship between the driver’s and constructor’s categories for the team, which returned Aston Martin as a branded team in 2021 following a six decade-plus absence.

Alpine

After spending a majority of the 2024 season mired with mixed on-track results and multiple changes towards the team’s technical and management front while also hovering towards the bottom of the constructor’s standings, the BWT Alpine F1 Team rallied over the final four events on the schedule and capped off the season with momentum by muscling up to sixth place with 65 points achieved.

The competitor who nailed the final set of points for Alpine to claim sixth place in the standings during the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was Pierre Gasly, who also managed to overtake Nico Hülkenberg for 10th place in the final driver’s standings by a single point. Gasly, a native of Rouen, France, who transitioned to Alpine from the Red Bull team in 2023, racked up an average-finishing result of 12.9 and he recorded 42 points. His lone highlight of the season was notching his fifth career podium during the São Paulo Grand Prix in November by finishing in third place and sharing the podium with his teammate and childhood rival Esteban Ocon. Like Gasly, Ocon’s lone highlight of the season was finishing in the runner-up position at São Paulo, which marked his fourth career podium result and first since finishing in third place during the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix. Amid Ocon’s podium, he only racked up 23 points and notched an average-finishing result of 13.7, which placed him in 14th place in the final driver’s standings.

Compared to Gasly, Ocon, a native of Évreux, France, was not retained by Alpine for the 2025 season and he ended up being replaced by newcomer Jack Doohan during the finale in Abu Dhabi. Doohan, a native of Gold Coast, Australia, who spent the previous two seasons as Alpine’s reserve driver and notched six victories in Formula 2, is set to embark in his maiden campaign in F1 competition in 2025 as he will partner with Gasly, the latter of whom inked a multi-year contract extension this past June to remain at Alpine beyond 2025. Both Doohan and Gasly enter next season with equal attempts to deliver the first driver’s and constructor’s titles for Alpine, a team that was rebranded from Renault since 2021.

Haas

After plummeting to dead last in the 2023 constructor’s standings, the MoneyGram Haas F1 Team rallied by climbing three spots to seventh place in this year’s constructor’s standings and racking up its second-highest accumulated points to a season at 58 following a yearlong battle to nearly crack the top-six mark.

The competitor who led the charge to Haas’ on-track success in 2024 was Nico Hülkenberg, who racked up 32 more points than his previous season at 41 and jumped five spots in the final driver’s standings to 11th place. The Emmerich am Rhein, Germany, native also recorded an average-finishing result of 11.6 and two season-best results of sixth-place runs in back-to-back Grand Prix events between Austria and Silverstone. Kevin Magnussen, Hülkenberg’s teammate from Roskilde, Denmark, who is coming off his sixth season as a Haas F1 competitor, managed to withstand a season where he was absent for two Grand Prix events (one for being suspended from Azerbaijan and another for being ill at Sao Paulo) to notch an average-finishing result of 13.4 and a total of 16 points, which was enough to climb up to 15th place in the standings and be four spots better from his previous season. Magnussen’s best result in 2024 was seventh, which occurred at Mexico City in late October.

Amid a successful 2024 season, Hülkenberg and Magnussen have both parted ways with Haas as the former transitions to Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber while the latter joins BMW Motorsport to pilot a M Hybrid V8 entry in 2025. The competitors who will represent Haas for next season are Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon. Bearman, a native of Havering, England, is promoted to a maiden F1 campaign after he spent this past season competing in Formula 2 for Prema Racing and serving as a reserve competitor for both Haas and Ferrari, the latter of which he notched an impressive seventh place during the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix while substituting for Carlos Sainz. Meanwhile, Ocon joins Haas following a five-year campaign at Alpine.

Visa Cash App Racing Bulls

With a rebranded identity and a midseason swap of a veteran notable for the return of an eventual Red Bull-promoted driver, the Visa Cash App RB F1 Team, which is set to be labeled Racing Bulls in 2025, capped off the 2024 F1 season in eighth place in the constructor’s standings for a second consecutive season.

The result comes with 46 points recorded as the organization spent the 2024 season flirting within the midfield section of the standings and challenging for sixth place in the constructor’s category. The competitor who led the team’s charge was Yuki Tsunoda, who nearly doubled his recorded points from his previous season at 30, notched a career-high nine top-10 results and claimed a new points result in the standings from 14th to 12th. Tsunoda, a native of Sagamihara, Japan, notched a season-best trio of seventh-place results in 2024, which occurred in Australia, Miami and São Paulo.

Tsunoda spent the first 18 Grand Prixs competing alongside veteran Daniel Ricciardo, the latter of whom returned to the grid for seven events with Racing Bulls after initially losing his full-time seat at McLaren following the 2022 season. Ricciardo, an eight-time Grand Prix winner from Perth, Australia, who returned to the Red Bull team in 2023, spent the first 18-scheduled events recording three top-10 results and with goals of being promoted back up to Red Bull from Racing Bulls. After Ricciardo was released by the team following the Singapore Grand Prix and amid a difficult 2024 campaign where he struggled to keep pace with Tsunoda, Liam Lawson assumed Ricciardo’s seat at Racing Bulls as he campaigned in the remaining six events on the schedule. During the six-race stretch, he notched two ninth-place results, which was enough for him to be promoted to Red Bull over Tsunoda.

In 2025, Visa Cash App Racing Bull’s lineup will consist of Tsunoda and Isack Hadjar, the latter of whom is Red Bull’s reserve competitor and is coming off a runner-up result in the final standings to the 2024 Formula 2 season while competing for Campos Racing. Next season is set to mark Hadjar’s maiden campaign in F1 competition as both he and Tsunoda strive to make Racing Bulls competitive alongside Red Bull and place the team to its first top-five result or higher in the constructor’s standings.

Williams

Coming off a strong 2023 season, the Williams Racing organization dropped two spots to ninth place in the 2024 final constructor’s standings amid a midseason swap of competitors and a final combined points tally of 17. Like the previous two seasons, the team’s front-runner was Alexander Albon, a Thailand competitor who settled in 16th place in the final driver’s standings in a season mired with only 12 recorded points and an average-finishing result of 14.5. Albon, who is coming off his third consecutive season driving for Williams, also recorded the team’s best finish of the season in seventh place, which occurred during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in September.

Logan Sargeant, the team’s second competitor from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, spent 14 of the first 15-scheduled events competing as a Williams competitor, where he racked up a season-best 11th-place result at Silverstone Circuit in July. Sargeant was then replaced by Franco Colapinto, a Formula 2 competitor for MP Motorsport and a Williams Driver Academy competitor from Pilar, Argentina, prior to September and for the remaining nine-scheduled events. The change for Colapinto occurred as Sargeant had racked up an average-finishing result of 17.1 with no points recorded and was involved in two accidents in Japan and the Netherlands that cost the team financially in damages. During his nine-race stint, Colapinto finished in the top 10 twice and notched a season-best eighth place on the track in Azerbaijan, which was enough to claim 19th place in the driver’s standings with five points.

In 2025, the organization welcomes Carlos Sainz, a native of Madrid, Spain, who departed Ferrari after four seasons and despite recording his maiden four Grand Prix victories over the previous three seasons, including two this season at Australia in March and at Mexico in October. The pair of victories were enough for Sainz to settle in fifth place in the 2024 driver’s standings with a career-best average-finishing result of 5.7 and career-high stats in points accumulated (290) and podiums (nine). Sainz is set to compete alongside Albon, the latter of whom inked a multi-year contract extension in May to remain at Williams through 2027, as both attempt to contend for the team’s first driver’s and constructor’s titles since 1997. Amid Sainz’s first entrance as a Williams competitor, Colapinto is left without an F1 ride for the 2025 season.

Kick Sauber

Rounding out the field is Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber that will feature a complete overhaul of its driver lineup in 2025. This past season, the team featured Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu as its drivers for a third consecutive season. The team’s lone highlight was notching four points during the Qatar Grand Prix that was made by Guanyu, who finished in eighth place. The points accumulated by Guanyu were enough for the Shanghai native to climb up to 20th place in the final driver’s standings. Meanwhile, Bottas, who first joined Kick Saber in 2022 following a seven-year campaign at Mercedes, concluded a season with no points for the first time in his F1 career. With a career-low average-finishing result of 15.8 and finishing no higher than 11th, which occurred at Qatar, Bottas settled in 22nd place in the 2024 driver’s standings.

In 2025, the team’s driver lineup will consist of Nico Hülkenberg, who departed Haas after two seasons, and Gabriel Bortoleto, the latter of whom achieved both the 2024 Formula 2 championship and the 2023 Formula 3 championship. While Bottas returns to Mercedes as a reserve competitor, Gyanyu is left with uncertainties for next season.

Like the previous season, the 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship season will feature 24 Grand Prix events that span across 21 countries and five continents in 10 months. The 2025 season commences with the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, that will occur on March 16.

December 20, 2024
Haas F1 signs Hülkenberg, releases Schumacher, for 2023 F1 season

Haas F1 Team announced that veteran Nico Hülkenberg will be returning to Formula One competition on a full-time basis and compete for the Kannapolis-based organization for the 2023 season, where he will be replacing Mick Schumacher.

The announcement comes ahead of this weekend’s season-finale event at Yas Marina Circuit for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which will conclude the 2022 FIA Formula World Championship season. It also comes after months of speculation and following a season-long struggle for Schumacher, who will compete for the organization for a final time this upcoming weekend.

“I’m very happy to move into a full-time race seat with Haas F1 Team in 2023,” Hülkenberg said. “I feel like I never really left Formula 1. I’m excited to have the opportunity to do what I love the most again and want to thank Gene Haas and Günther Steiner for their trust. We have work ahead of us to be able to compete with all the other teams in the midfield, and I cannot wait to join that battle again.”

For Hülkenberg, the 35-year-old native from Emmerich, Germany, has made a total of 181 career starts in F1 competition, which commenced in 2010 when he competed for AT&T Williams. He last competed as a full-time F1 competitor in 2019, where he drove for the Renault F1 Team and finished in 14th place in the driver’s standings on a strength of 10 top-10 points-paying results and 37 recorded points.

After competing as an interim competitor for Racing Point in two Grand Prix events in 2020, Hülkenberg has since spent the previous two seasons as a reserve and development competitor for the Aston Martin F1 Team, which was rebranded from Racing Point. For this season, he replaced four-time champion Sebastian Vettel for the first two Grand Prix events in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia after Vettel tested positive for COVID-19. He finished 17th at Bahrain before rallying to finish 12th in Saudi Arabia.

While he has yet to achieve his maiden podium and victory in F1 competition, Hülkenberg has a single pole position to his resume, which was made during the 2010 Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos Circuit, along with 43 laps led, 521 recorded points and an average-finishing result of 11.5 in 181 career starts. His best on-track result in F1 is fourth place, which he achieved during the 2012 Belgium Grand Prix, the 2013 Korean Grand Prix and the 2016 Belgium Grand Prix.

“I’m naturally very pleased to be welcoming Nico Hülkenberg back to a full-time racing role in Formula 1,” Guenther Steiner, Team Principal of Haas F1 Team, said. “The experience and knowledge base Nico brings to the team is clear to see – with nearly 200 career starts in Formula 1 – and a reputation as being a great qualifier and a solid, reliable racer. These are attributes, which when you pair them together with Kevin Magnussen’s experience, gives us a very credible and well-seasoned driver line-up which we believe will help push the team onwards up the grid. That’s obviously the goal and it was that ambition that has prompted Nico’s return to Formula 1 – he shares our vision and can be a key player together with the rest of the team in building on the foundations we’ve laid this year with our return to the points battle.”

Hülkenberg’s addition to Haas F1 Team will mark the conclusion of Schumacher’s two-year run in F1 competition that started in 2021, when he was hired to join the organization alongside newcomer Nikita Mazepin. By then, Schumacher, the son of seven-time F1 champion, Michael, had achieved the 2020 Formula 2 championship with Prema Racing. Despite recording an average-finishing result of 16.9 and finishing no higher than 12th place during his rookie season, Schumacher retained his seat at Haas for this season.

Throughout his second-year campaign in F1 competition, Schumacher struggled with maintaining on-track consistency and has had several incidents throughout the season that has cost Haas millions in damage repair. The low point was having to withdraw from the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in March following a high-impact wreck during a qualifying session. He managed to record his maiden top-10 result of this season along with his maiden F1 points at Silverstone Circuit in July. He backed it up during the following Grand Prix event at the Red Bull Ring by finishing in a career-best sixth place. With an average-finishing result of 14.0 throughout the 2022 season, however, Schumacher is mired back in a tie for 16th place in the driver’s standings with Scuderia AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda with 12 points.

“I would like to thank Mick Schumacher for his contribution to the team over the past couple of years,” Steiner added. “Mick’s pedigree in the junior categories was well known and he has continued to grow and develop as a driver in his time with Haas F1 Team – culminating in his first Formula 1 points-scoring successes earlier this season. While choosing to go in separate directions for the future, the entire team wishes Mick well for the next steps in his career path and beyond.”

Following the news of his release, Schumacher took to social media to offer his statement and gratitude to Haas F1 while his future for next season remains uncertain.

pic.twitter.com/pvm7CmEjLP
— Mick Schumacher (@SchumacherMick) November 17, 2022

For the 2023 F1 season, Hülkenberg will compete for Haas F1 Team alongside Kevin Magnussen, who will remain with the American organization as part of a multi-year basis. Magnussen, who reunited with Haas F1 following a one-year absence, is ranked in 13th place in the driver’s standings on the strength of six top-10 results and 25 points. He is also coming off his maiden pole position at Interlagos Circuit for the São Paulo Grand Prix.

Once the 2022 F1 season concludes, Hülkenberg’s work with Haas F1 Team will commence on November 22 by participating in an F1 test at Yas Marina Circuit, where he will drive the Haas’ VF-22 alongside Pietro Fittipaldi, Haas’ test and reserve competitor.

Entering this weekend’s season-finale Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit, Haas F1 Team are ranked in eighth place in the constructors’ standings with 37 points as they look to cap off the 2022 season on a strong note.

The 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship season is set to conclude at Yas Marina Circuit for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which will occur on Sunday, November 20.

November 17, 2022
2020 Formula One season in review

Twenty-three weeks (161 days) since its start, the 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship season concluded on December 13 when the final checkered flag flew at Yas Marina Circuit following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. While another season of Formula One competition was stamped in the record books, this season has been like none others in recent years.

Initially set to commence in March, the 2020 Formula One season was also set to mark the start of a new era of motorsports competition, highlighted with 22 Grand Prix events on the schedule and the sport celebrating its 70th anniversary of the first Formula One World Drivers’ Championship. Instead, everything changed in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the start of this year’s F1 season and several Grand Prix events were cancelled.

Delayed for four months amid the pandemic, the season was able to make its highly anticipated start on the track in early July as new and familiar Grand Prix events along with old circuits made its way into a rescheduled calendar for a total of 17 events spanning six months.

Throughout the season, the competitors and teams competed as a unity amid the COVID-19 pandemic while also expressing solidarity against acts of social injustices. Along the way, new and familiar faces rose to the spotlight both on and off the track while the dynasty of a multi-time champion took another step into history. In addition, a number of competitors concluded their final seasons with their current teams, with some set to embark on new adventures with new teams entering a new season while others await their future plans.

With the 2020 F1 season concluded, here is a rundown of the teams and competitors that competed throughout this season as they look ahead to 2021.

Amid a pandemic year, there was no denying another dominating on-track season for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team, which claimed its record seventh consecutive Drivers’ and Constructors’ championships (573 points) and placed its two drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, atop the Drivers’ standings. Since the first Grand Prix event of this season, the Mercedes team was in total control of the championship standings for the drivers and the constructors, winning all but four of 17 Grand Prix events and all but two poles throughout the 2020 season. Following their latest victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit in late November, the Mercedes team surpassed the Williams Racing team for the third-most victories in F1 with 115. After eclipsing Ferrari’s previous record of six consecutive Constructors’ championships, Mercedes has an opportunity in making more history and extending their championship streak to eight, which would move them into a tie with McLaren for the third-most Constructors’ titles.

With 11 Grand Prix victories and another world championship added to his resume, Lewis Hamilton has taken another step towards history as he continues to shatter the record books following another dominating season with Mercedes. Compared to his previous championship seasons, this season was also like none other for the 35-year-old veteran from Stevenage, England, who started the season kneeling prior to every race and expressing solidarity towards the Black Lives Matter movement and against acts of racial injustices. It only took two races into the 2020 season for Hamilton to commence his run for the title when he won the Styrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Styria, Austria, and claimed his first victory of the season. From July to September, he went on to claim Grand Prix victories at Hungary, Great Britain’s Silverstone, Spain, Belgium and Italy’s Tuscany while finishing no lower than seventh. After finishing in third place in the Russian Grand Prix, Hamilton went on to win the following Grand Prix events in Nürburg, Portugal, Imola and Turkey. Following his win in the Portuguese Grand Prix, Hamilton surpassed seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher and became the all-time Grand Prix wins leader with 92. Two races later, he clinched his record-tying seventh world championship with a victory in Turkey and tied Schumacher for the most F1 titles. Two days after claiming his 95th career victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix, Hamilton was unable to compete in the upcoming Sakhir Grand Prix after testing positive for COVID-19 symptoms. With Williams’ driver George Russell filling in at Bahrain, Hamilton was able to return the following week and cap off the 2020 season in third place in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Despite being absent for a single race, he walked away with the championship and with a 124-point advantage over teammate Valtteri Bottas, leaving him one title short of holding the most F1 titles of all time. Currently, Hamilton does not have a contract to drive for Mercedes for next season, though he intends on having a new contract with the team set by Christmas.

For a second consecutive season, teammate Valtteri Bottas opened a new season of Formula One racing by winning the season opener and he went on to finish in the runner-up spot in the final Drivers’ standings behind Lewis Hamilton. On this occasion, he settled behind Hamilton in the standings by 124 points compared to 87 last season. The 31-year-old veteran from Nastola, Finland, started the season with three consecutive podium results, including his win in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. He went on to win the Russian Grand Prix in late September and rack up seven additional podium results, including five additional runner-up results, for the remaining 14 events of the season. Throughout the season, he did not finish in the top 10 three times and he struggled during two Grand Prix events at Bahrain, which ended his title hopes for this season. Nonetheless, he concluded the season with a second-place result in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where he also settled in second place in the Drivers’ standings for a second consecutive season. Currently, Bottas is set to return to Mercedes for the 2021 F1 season.

Settling in the runner-up position in the 2020 Formula One Constructors’ standings with 319 points is the Aston Martin Red Bull Racing team, which claimed its highest-points result in the standings since claiming second place in the Constructors’ standings following the 2016 F1 season. Despite trailing Mercedes throughout the season, Red Bull Racing, coming off its second season powered by Honda engines, rallied from double retirements in Austria to record two victories and 24 top-10 results throughout the season. With a win in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to cap off this season, Red Bull Racing aims to close the gap to Mercedes and return as world champions since winning four consecutive titles in 2010-13.

If there is a current competitor on the grid who emerges as a potential championship threat for the 2021 season, it is Max Verstappen, who is coming off his sixth season in F1 competition. When the 2020 F1 schedule was re-drafted and the season opener was moved to the Red Bull Ring in early July, the 23-year-old Verstappen aimed to start the season on a strong note and with an advantage after winning the previous two Grand Prix events in Spielberg. Instead, his season started off on a low note when early electrical issues sidelined him. He rebounded from his early misfortune by finishing on the podium in the next six Grand Prix events. During this streak, he recorded the first victory of the season for himself and Red Bull Racing in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix at Silverstone Circuit in August. For the next nine Grand Prix events, he recorded four additional podium results, but sustained four retirements, which allowed Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes to run away with the Drivers’ and Constructors’ championships for the 2020 season. While he did not claim his first F1 title, he recorded a dominating victory in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from the pole, a victory which allowed him to conclude the season in a career-best third place in the Drivers’ standings with 214 points and provide a potential preview of his run for the 2021 title.

Following his late but superb on-track audition with Red Bull Racing last season, Alexander Albon was given a full-time ride with Red Bull for the 2020 season with hopes of extending his strong performances and taking the next step in challenging for victories and podiums on a regular basis. His season started off, however, on a low note when he was involved in a late incident with Lewis Hamilton, where Hamilton spun Albon while he was in position of recording his first podium result. Since then, he went on a six-race streak of finishing in the top 10, with his best result being fourth place at the Styrian Grand Prix in July. A week after finishing 15th at the Italian Grand Prix, Albon prevailed over a late battle with Daniel Ricciardo to capture his first podium result in the Tuscan Grand Prix at Mugello Circuit with a third-place finish. With his accomplishment, the 24-year-old Albon became the first Thai F1 competitor to achieve a podium result. During the next five races, however, he finished no higher than seventh place as he sustained a retirement and two results outside of the top 10. He rebounded during the final three races of the season by finishing in the top six on the track. Among his late accomplishments included his second career podium result in the Bahrain Grand Prix with a third-place result and finishing in fourth place in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. In the end, Albon concluded his sophomore season in F1 in seventh place in the Drivers’ standings, one spot better than his rookie season, with 105 points. Despite a strong finish to this season, Albon’s F1 plans for next season remains uncertain.

With Mercedes and Red Bull emerging as the two front-runners of the 2020 F1 season, it was also a victorious season for the McLaren F1 Team, which achieved two podium results and finished in third place in this year’s Constructors’ standings with 202 points following a strong consistent season for drivers Carlos Sainz Jr. and Lando Norris. The result marked McLaren’s return to the top three in the Constructors’ standings for the first time since 2012 and following a year-long battle against names like Racing Point and Renault. It also snapped McLaren’s seven-year span of finishing no higher than fourth place in the Constructors’ standings. With the McLaren Group coming off a new long-term investment deal into McLaren Racing from MSP Sports Capital, an American sports investment group, and switching from Renault to Mercedes engines for 2021, McLaren, winner of 12 Drivers’ championships and eight Constructors’ championships, aims to return as race winners and world champions in the coming years in F1 competition.

Following a strong 2019 season with McLaren, Carlos Sainz Jr. started this season on another strong note by finishing in fifth place in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. The 26-year-old native from Madrid, Spain, backed it up by finishing ninth in the Styrian Grand Prix while also recording the fastest lap of the race and finishing ninth again the following Grand Prix at Mogyoród, Hungary. During the next four Grand Prix events, Sainz’s best result was sixth place at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, his home track. The lowlight during the stretch was failing to start the Belgian Grand Prix during to a power unit issue. He rallied back in early September by collecting his second career podium result at Italy’s Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, where he notched a career-best second place behind race winner Pierre Gasly. Despite retiring the following two Grand Prix events at Tuscany and Russia, Sainz concluded the season by finishing in the top 10 for the remaining seven events. In the end, he contributed to McLaren finishing in third place in the Constructors’ standings as he settled in a career-best sixth place in the Drivers’ standings with 105 points. Despite a successful two-year run with McLaren, Sainz is set to join Scuderia Ferrari for the 2021 F1 season.

Like Sainz, teammate Lando Norris had a productive on-track season that started off on a bright note when he captured his maiden podium result in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. Though he initially crossed the finish line in fourth place, the 21-year-old native from Bristol, England, benefitted from Lewis Hamilton being penalized five seconds on the track due to being involved in a late incident with Alexander Albon to finish 4.8 seconds behind Hamilton and move into third place on the track, thus becoming the third podium sitter in F1 at age 20 years, seven months and 22 days. Throughout his sophomore campaign in F1, Norris achieved 13 top-10 results, including the final five events of the 2020 season and two fastest lap times in two Grand Prix events with only one retirement. Like Sainz, Norris contributed to McLaren finishing in third place in the Constructors’ standings as he settled in ninth place in the Drivers’ standings, two spots better than his rookie season, with 97 points. Unlike Sainz, Norris will remain as a McLaren F1 competitor for the 2021 season.

If there was a team that fought through adversity and intimidated McLaren for third place in the Constructors’ standings all the way to the final checkered flag of the season, it was the BWT Racing Point F1 Team. In the team’s second full-time season as Racing Point, the team achieved an abundant of on-track success amid challenges and a disappointing start to this season. The low moment for the team occurred in July when protests coming from Renault were launched over the team’s use of brake ducts not designed by Racing Point themselves and copying the ducts used by Mercedes in 2019. In between back-to-back Grand Prix events at Silverstone, United Kingdom, the team was fined €400,000 and docked 15 points in the Constructors’ standings after Renault’s protests were upheld. In addition, Racing Point’s two drivers, Sergio “Checo” Perez and Lance Stroll, were absent from a Grand Prix event after testing positive for COVID-19 symptoms. Their absences allowed veteran Nico Hülkenberg to fill in as a relief competitor for a total of three races. Amid the challenges throughout the season, Racing Point remained in contention to emerge as the third-best team in 2020 while achieving its first victory in the Sakhir Grand Prix with Perez. While the team achieved a total of 24 top-10 results between its two-car lineup, late on-track issues during the Grand Prix events in Bahrain and Abu Dhabi left Racing Point behind McLaren as the third-best team in 2020 by seven points. Nonetheless, the fourth-place result in the Constructors’ standings (195 points) marks the team’s best best points results since the 2017 Formula One season when the team competed as the Sahara Force India F1 Team. With the 2020 season concluded, Racing Point is set to rebranded as Aston Martin F1 Team for the 2021 season.

In his 10th season as an F1 competitor, Sergio “Checo” Perez is coming off a career-defining season that currently leaves him uncertain of his status for next season. The 30-year-old veteran from Guadalajara, Mexico, started the season with three consecutive results in the top 10. His season, however, was placed in jeopardy when he was absent from the following two Grand Prix events at Silverstone due to testing positive for COVID-19 symptoms. During his absence, Nico Hülkenberg filled in, where he failed to make the starting grid for the British Grand Prix but rebounded with a seventh-place result in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix. Returning in mid-August for the Spanish Grand Prix at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Perez rebounded with a fifth-place result. From Spain in August through the Turkish Grand Prix in November, he went on a nine-race streak of finishing in the top 10 and collecting an abundant of points. During this span, he achieved his first elusive podium result since 2018 in the Turkish Grand Prix after coming home in a career-best second place behind the champion Lewis Hamilton. By then, however, it was confirmed that Perez will not be remaining with Racing Point for the 2021 season, though he initially inked a three-year contract extension with the team following the 2019 season. After retiring in the final laps of the Bahrain Grand Prix due to an engine failure and while having a podium spot within his grasp, Perez returned to Bahrain International Circuit with vengeance and won after rallying from an opening lap incident to claim his maiden F1 victory in the Sakhir Grand Prix and in his 190th career start. With his first F1 victory, Perez became the 110th different competitor to win a Grand Prix event and the first Mexican competitor to win a Grand Prix event since Pedro Rodriguez made the last accomplishment in the 1970 Belgian Grand Prix. His final ride with Racing Point, however, ended on a low note during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, when an early technical issue sidelined the Mexican. Despite the bitter conclusion, Perez achieved a career-best fourth place in the Drivers’ standings with 125 points. Currently, his racing plans for next season are unknown.

Like Perez, teammate Lance Stroll also achieved great success on the track in his fourth full-time season as an F1 competitor. Following an early retirement in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix, the 22-year-old Stroll from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, went on a seven-race streak of finishing in the top 10 and collecting an abundant of points. By then, he was coming off his second career podium result after finishing in third place in the Italian Grand Prix in early September. The next five Grand Prix events, however, did not fall in Stroll’s favor as he suffered three retirements. In addition, he withdrew from competing in the Eifel Grand Prix in October due to testing positive for COVID-19 symptoms, which allowed Nico Hülkenberg to fill in for his third race as a Racing Point interim competitor. Stroll rebounded the following event on the schedule, Turkish Grand Prix, by capturing his maiden pole position and becoming the first Canadian F1 pole winner since Jacques Villeneuve made the last accomplishment at the 1997 European Grand Prix. He also was one of two F1 competitors not driving for Mercedes to win a pole position throughout the 2020 season. He went on to finish in ninth place during the main event. A week after flipping early in the Bahrain Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit, Stroll again rebounded by claiming his third podium result of his career, second of the season, in the Sakhir Grand Prix at Bahrain after finishing in third place, two spots behind teammate and winner Sergio Perez. He went on to cap off the season in 10th place in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and settle in a career-best 11th place in the Drivers’ standings with 75 points. With Perez departing, Stroll is set to remain with Racing Point that will be rebranded to Aston Martin.

Another team that contended for the third-place spot in the Constructors’ standings throughout the 2020 season was the Renault DP World F1 Team. Following a difficult 2019 season, Renault’s two-driver lineup, featuring Daniel Ricciardo and Esteban Ocon, recorded a combined 24 top-10 results, six more than 2019, and three podium results along with two fastest time laps in two Grand Prix events, both with Ricciardo. The results, however, were not enough for the two-time world championship team to overtake McLaren and Racing Point in the Constructors’ standings, with Renault concluding the 2020 season in fifth place, equivalent to 2019, but with 181 points compared to 91 in 2019. Like Racing Point, Renault is set to be rebranded as the Alpine F1 Team for the 2021 season while sporting the French national colors of red, white and blue and compete with Renault engines. In addition, the team is excited to feature two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso as one of its two competitors for the 2021 season, which will mark Alonso’s return to Formula One competition since 2018.

For Daniel Ricciardo, his second season with Renault started off on a low note when he retired in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix due to overheating issues. Compared to last season and despite the season-opening retirement, the 31-year-old veteran from Perth, Australia, did not record another retirement for the remainder of this season. Instead, he finished in the top 10 in all but two of the remaining 16 Grand Prix events and achieved two fastest lap times in two Grand Prix events. By the end of September, his best on-track result was fourth place (twice). During the following Grand Prix at Nürburgring, Germany, Ricciardo achieved his first podium result with Renault after finishing in third place behind race winner Lewis Hamilton and runner-up Max Verstappen. The podium result was Ricciardo’s first since winning the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix and the first for Renault since the 2011 Malaysian Grand Prix. Two races later, he achieved another podium result in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Italy after finishing in third place. Afterwards, he capped off the season with four consecutive top-10 results and finished in fifth place in the Drivers’ standings with 119 points, his best result in the standings since 2017. Despite a successful 2020 run with Renault, Ricciardo is set to open a new chapter to his resume in 2021 as he will become a McLaren F1 competitor.

After being left without a full-time seat for the 2019 season, Esteban Ocon began his comeback return in F1 this season when he replaced Nico Hülkenberg as one of Renault’s two competitors. The 24-year-old native from Évreux, France, started the season by finishing eighth in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. He then retired during the Styrian Grand Prix and finished 14th in the Hungarian Grand Prix before recording back-to-back top-10 results at Silverstone. Through the first 15 Grand Prix events of this season and entering the Bahrain Grand Prix, Ocon’s best on-track result was fifth place, which occurred during the Belgian Grand Prix in August. While he achieved eight top-10 results, he also sustained four retirements. Nonetheless, he managed to conclude the season on a positive note when he earned his maiden F1 podium result in the Sakhir Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit by finishing in second place in his 66th career start and behind ex-teammate Sergio Perez. A ninth-place result in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit following a late battle with Lance Stroll was enough for him to conclude the season in 12th place in the Drivers’ standings, the same spot he finished in following his previous full-time season in 2018 but with 62 points. Following an up-and-down season, Ocon is set to remain with Renault that will be rebranded to Alpine in 2021.

For the first time since the 2014 Formula One season, Scuderia Ferrari did not conclude an F1 season in the top three in the Constructors’ standings. Instead, the team, which has achieved 16 Constructors’ championships, 15 Drivers’ championships and 237 victories, settled in sixth place in the standings with 131 points, their lowest points result since finishing 10th in 1980. In addition, the team failed to win a Grand Prix event since the 2016 season. Since the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix, Ferrari struggled with pace and speed against the competition. Through the first half of the 2020 F1 season, the team only achieved two podium results with Charles Leclerc. While Leclerc improved with consistency in the second half of the season, teammate and former F1 champion Sebastian Vettel struggled throughout the entire season in finishing in the points for himself and the team. Following a difficult 2020 season, Ferrari looks to rebound and return to competitive form in 2021.

After achieving his first two Grand Prix events, 10 podium results and a fourth-place result in the Drivers’ standings last season, Charles Leclerc opened his second full-time season with Ferrari by finishing in second place in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix following a slow start. Following two results outside of the top 10, he claimed his second podium result of the season in the British Grand Prix in Silverstone, which was followed with a fourth-place result in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix. He then sustained two retirements during the next three Grand Prix events, which diminished his hopes for the 2020 F1 title. From Tuscany, Italy in September through Sakhir, Bahrain in November, Leclerc rallied by finishing in the top 10 in seven consecutive Grand Prix events, with a best result of fourth place (twice). Despite his late consistent surge, he concluded the season on a low note by retiring in the Sakhir Grand Prix following an opening lap multi-car crash and finishing 13th in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. When the checkered flag flew and the dust settled, Leclerc concluded the season in eighth place in the 2020 Drivers’ standings, four spots lower than his first campaign with Ferrari, with 98 points, the highest-finishing competitor with double-digit points. The 23-year-old Leclerc from Monte Carlo, Monaco, is slated to remain as a Ferrari competitor through 2024.

Prior to this season’s start in July and during the pandemic, teammate Sebastian Vettel was thrown into the spotlight when it was announced that he will not be remaining with Ferrari following the 2020 season and following a six-year run with one of motorsport’s iconic names. When the season started, Vettel struggled with consistency and in keeping pace with the competition. Following the first half of the 2020 F1 season, nine races completed, Vettel’s highest-finishing result was sixth place, which occurred in the Hungarian Grand Prix in mid-July. In addition, he had achieved four additional top-10 results, but no podium results and two retirements. Vettel continued to struggle during the start of the second half of the season as he finished no higher than 10th place during the next four Grand Prix events. The following Grand Prix event in Turkey, Vettel captured his first elusive podium result of the season after crossing the finish line in third place. For the final three Grand Prix events of the season, however, he finished no higher than 12th place. In the end, Vettel capped off a long season of racing in 13th place in the Drivers’ standings, his lowest result since 2007, with 33 points. With his time with Ferrari complete, the four-time world champion from Heppenheim, West Germany, is set to join the Aston Martin F1 Team, rebranded from Racing Point.

Coming home in seventh place in the Constructors’ standings and the final team with triple-digit points (107) is the Scuderia AlphaTauri team. Rebranded from Toro Rosso and a sister team to Red Bull Racing, the team finished one spot behind from last season in the Constructors’ standings, but achieved a fair share of on-track success in 2020. The team’s bright moment was winning the Italian Grand Prix in September with Pierre Gasly, which marked the team’s first victory as AlphaTauri but second overall since winning the 2008 Italian Grand Prix with Sebastian Vettel while known as Toro Rosso. Throughout the 2020 campaign, the team’s two-driver lineup, featuring Gasly and Daniil Kvyat, achieved a total of 17 top-10 results and gained points in all but two of 17 Grand Prix events this season. The results, however, were not enough for the team to join the battle for the third-best team in the Constructors’ standings, but the team remains poised to be competitive on the track next season.

A year after being demoted from Red Bull Racing to Toro Rosso and achieving his maiden podium result at Brazil, Pierre Gasly experienced another first in his racing career this season. That first was his maiden Grand Prix win at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza in Italy in early September, where the 24-year-old native from Rouen, France, benefitted from an early pit stop and 10-second stop-and-go penalties handed to Lewis Hamilton and Antonio Giovinazzi to carve his way to the lead and hold off Carlos Sainz Jr. to score his first victory in F1 competition. With his accomplishment, he became the first French competitor to win a Grand Prix event since Olivier Panis made the last accomplishment in the 1996 Monaco Grand Prix. He also became the 109th different competitor to win a Grand Prix event and the first competitor not representing Mercedes, Ferrari or Red Bull to win an F1 race since Kimi Räikkönen won the 2013 Australian Grand Prix while driving a Lotus. In addition to his win, Gasly achieved 10 top-10 results throughout the 17-race schedule, four fewer than 2019, while also sustaining three retirements. By finishing in eighth place in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, he was able to conclude his junior season in Formula One in 10th place in the Drivers’ standings with 75 points. Following a productive 2020 season highlighted with his maiden F1 victory, Gasly is set to remain with AlphaTauri for the 2021 season.

Compared to Gasly, teammate Daniil Kvyat had an up-and-down season in his sixth campaign in Formula One. A year after collecting a podium result in Germany and 10 top-10 results, the 26-year-old native from Ufa, Russia, opened this season with two retirements and finishing no higher than 10th place (twice) through the first seven Grand Prix events in 2020. He rallied during the following three Grand Prix events in Monza, Tuscany and Russia, his home country, by finishing in the top 10. Following a two-race slump in Germany and Portugal, Kvyat recorded a season-best fourth-place result in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in November. For the final four Grand Prix events of the season, however, Kvyat finished no higher than seventh place as he settled in 14th place in the final Drivers’ standings, one spot lower than last season, with 32 points. Currently, Kvyat’s F1 plans for next season remain uncertain.

Finishing in eighth place in this year’s Constructors’ standings with eight points is the Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen team. Compared to last season, where the team opened the season with four consecutive top-10 results, the team opened the 2020 campaign with a single top-10 result, which occurred in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix with Antonio Giovinazzi. Throughout the season, Alfa Romeo’s two-car lineup struggled to gain points and run towards the front. In total, the team secured a best on-track result of ninth place (three times) and five top-10 results, which was enough to emerge as the first team with single-digit points ahead of Haas and Williams (eight). Despite a difficult 2020 campaign, the team will retain its driver lineup, featuring Giovinazzi and Kimi Räikkönen, for the 2021 season.

The 2020 Formula One season marked a career low for Kimi Räikkönen, the 2007 F1 champion, as he recorded a career-low four points, two top-10 results and a final result of 16th place in the Drivers’ standings. Through the first nine races of this season, the 41-year-old veteran from Espoo, Finland, finished no higher than 11th place on the track. He was originally in position of battling for the lead and the win in the Italian Grand Prix in September until he faded in the late stages and finished in 13th place. During the second half of the season, Räikkönen managed to collect his first top-10 result and pair of points in the Tuscan Grand Prix in September. Four races later, he picked up another ninth-place result in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in November. Since then, his next highest result on the track was 11th place. In the end, Räikkönen tied teammate Giovinazzi as the highest-finishing competitor in the Drivers’ standings with single-digit points. With the 2020 season concluded, Räikkönen will remain as an Alfa Romeo F1 competitor next season.

Following a difficult freshman season in Formula One, Antonio Giovinazzi started off the 2020 season on a stronger note by finishing in ninth place in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. It was not until the Eifel Grand Prix in October, however, until the 27-year-old native from Martina Franca, Italy, picked up his second top-10 result of the season (10th place) as he suffered two retirements during the first 10 Grand Prix events this season. He managed to pick up his third top-10 result of the season in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in November following a 10th-place result. Since then, Giovinazzi struggled with pace. In the end, he concluded the season in 17th place in the Drivers’ standings, equivalent to the 2019 season, but with four points, 10 fewer than his rookie season. Like Räikkönen, Giovinazzi will retain his seat with Alfa Romeo in 2021.

Emerging as the next-to-last team scored in this year’s Constructors’ standings is the Haas F1 team, which achieved a career-low three points in its fifth season in competition. Like last season, the Haas F1 Team struggled with their VF-20 and keeping pace with the competition. It took three races into the 2020 season for the team to achieve their first points of the season with Kevin Magnussen finishing in 10th place in the Hungarian Grand Prix in mid-July. Since then, the team picked up two additional points to this season with Romain Grosjean finishing in ninth place in the Eifel Grand Prix in October. Mired within their on-track struggles were 10 retirements, including a harrowing accident in the Bahrain Grand Prix that left Grosjean injured and sidelined for the remainder of the season. While the Haas F1 Team equalized their result in the Constructors’ standings from last season (ninth place), the team achieved a career-low three points. With the 2020 season complete, Haas is set to feature a new two-car lineup for the 2021 season, featuring Mick Schumacher, son of seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher, and Nikita Mazepin from Moscow, Russia.

With a single point recorded throughout this season, Kevin Magnussen recorded his fewest points in an F1 season since recording seven in 2016. His lone highlight in 2020 was finishing in 10th place in the Hungarian Grand Prix at Hungaroring in mid-July, the third event of the season, and recording the first point of the season for himself and Haas. Since then, his next highest result throughout the 2020 season was 12th place (twice) as he struggled to earn consistent results. In addition, the 28-year-old native from Roskilde, Denmark, sustained seven retirements throughout the season and he concluded the season in a career-low 20th place in the Drivers’ standings. Following six full-time seasons in Formula One, four with Haas, Magnussen is set to compete in the 2021 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season with Chip Ganassi Racing.

Like Magnussen, teammate Romain Grosjean endured a long 2020 season that came to a late conclusion. Through 14 of 17 Grand Prix events this season, the 34-year-old veteran who competed under the French flag finished no higher than ninth place, which occurred during the Eifel Grand Prix in October. His next highest-finishing result throughout the 2020 season was 12th place (twice) as he sustained two retirements. Grosjean’s season took a harrowing turn during the opening lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix in late November, when he made contact with AlphaTauri’s Daniil Kvyat, spun and collided into the barriers in Turn 3 at full speed. The impact split Grosjean’s Haas VF-20 in half, where the driver slipped through the upper section of the barrier with the front half of the car and with flames being ignited following the crash. Miraculously, Grosjean was able to extract himself from the wreckage without any assistance before receiving on-track treatment and being transported to the Bahrain Defence Force Hospital by helicopter for further treatment for burns on his hands. After spending three nights in the hospital, he returned to Bahrain and his paddock to be with his team and greet the medical and track/safety workers, among which included Dr. Roberts and medical car driver Alan van der Merwe, who saved his life. While he did not compete in the upcoming Sakhir Grand Prix, he ultimately decided to conclude his five-year run with Haas early to focus on his recovery and health. With Pietro Fittipaldi, grandson of two-time F1 champion Emerson Fittipaldi, filling in as a relief Haas competitor, Grosjean capped off the 2020 season in 19th place in the Drivers’ standings with two points. He currently has no racing plans lined up for 2021.

Finally, the Williams Racing team capped off the 2020 campaign in last place in the Constructors’ standings with zero points. The team started the season on a promising note when Nicholas Latifi finished in 11th place in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. Throughout the season, the team’s best result on the track was 11th place (four times) while also sustaining seven retirements. The team’s low point of the season occurred in early September when Claire Williams, Deputy Team Principal of Williams Racing, and the Williams family ended their 43-year involvement with Formula One following the Italian Grand Prix. The team was acquired by Dorilton Capital, an American investment group, for €152 million while remaining as Williams Racing and based in the United Kingdom. While the team’s two-driver lineup, featuring Latifi and George Russell, came close in recording a single point at certain Grand Prix events, the team ultimately settled in 10th place (last) in the Constructors’ standings for a third consecutive season.

For much of the 2020 Formula One season, George Russell, dubbed as a future star in F1, was nowhere towards the front. The 22-year-old native from King’s Lynn, Norfolk, England, achieved best results of 11th place (once) and 12th place (twice) while also sustaining four retirements through the first 15 Grand Prix events of this season. Then came an opportunity of a lifetime in the Sakhir Grand Prix at the Bahrain International Circuit when Russell was selected to drive for the championship-winning Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team in place of the champion Lewis Hamilton, who was absent due to COVID-19 symptoms. During his one-race absence from Williams, British-Korean racer Jack Aitken made his F1 debut in place of Russell. Starting the race on the front row along with Valtteri Bottas, Russell dominated the event. During a pit stop sequence in the late stages, however, Russell’s road to victory was stalled when a mix-up in the Mercedes’ pit lane over the tire installments for Russell and Bottas resulted with Russell making another pit stop to have the correct set of tires installed on his car. Dropping back to fifth place, Russell wasted no time carving his way back to the front as he worked his way back into second place Sergio Perez. Just as he had the pace and victory within sight, everything changed when he was forced to make a late unscheduled pit stop due to a left-rear tire puncture. Returning back on the track, he ended the race in ninth place. While he earned his first three points in Formula One racing and established the fastest lap during the race, he was left dejected over the late issue that cost him his first F1 victory. Despite returning to Williams the following week and finishing in 15th place in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Russell concluded the season in 18th place in the Drivers’ standings, two spots better than his rookie season. He is also due to remain with Williams Racing for the 2021 Formula One season.

Unlike Russell, teammate Nicholas Latifi is coming off his first full-time campaign in Formula One racing, where he replaced veteran Robert Kubica. The 25-year-old rookie from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, recorded a strong 11th-place result in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. He picked up two additional 11th-place results throughout the season while also sustaining three retirements. In the end, Latifi was the lone full-time F1 competitor to not record a single point throughout the 2020 F1 season as he concluded the season in 21st place in the Drivers’ standings. Like teammate George Russell, Latifi will return for a second full-time campaign in F1 with Williams Racing in 2021.

With the 2020 F1 season complete, the drivers and teams are currently in off-season before returning for the start of the 2021 Formula One World Championship season on March 21 at Melbourne’s Albert Park Circuit for the Australian Grand Prix, the first of 23 Grand Prix events slated on the provisional schedule.

December 15, 2020
2020 Formula One mid-season review

The 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship season has officially reached its halfway point in a bizarre season like none other in recent years. Mired by a delayed start spanning four months and changes to its racing schedule amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the sport, celebrating its 70th anniversary of the first Formula One season, is currently in its third off-weekend break from a 17-race schedule revised from 22 before the drivers and the teams embark on an eight-race stretch to the conclusion of this season. With that, here is a rundown of all that has occurred throughout this year’s competitive F1 season as the competitors and teams prepare to finish this season on schedule while also setting their sights for next season and beyond.

Through the first nine Formula One races of this season, the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team leads the Constructors’ standings with 325 points while its two-driver lineup, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, lead the way in the Drivers’ standings. Even in the midst of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic across the globe, the resilience and dominance of the Mercedes team led by Team Principal & CEO Toto Wolff continues to be exemplified on the track and on a race weekend. With eight Drivers’ championships, six consecutive constructors’ championships and 109 career wins in F1, the team strives to achieve another pair of championships (Drivers’ and Constructors’ standings) and extend the winning legacy brought forth by the late Niki Lauda, three-time F1 champion and a former non-executive chairman of Mercedes.

For Hamilton, the reigning six-time Formula One champion from Stevenage, England, who is on the cusp of tying Michael Schumacher for the most F1 titles at seven, the 2020 season marks his second consecutive season where he has achieved six victories through the first nine races of a new season. He started off on a rough note this season by being penalized to a fourth-place result in the Austrian Grand Prix in Spielberg after making late contact with Alexander Albon. Since then, he went on to claim Grand Prix victories at Styrian, Hungary, Silverstone, Spain, Belgium and the recent GP event in Tuscany, Italy. With 90 career wins in F1, Hamilton is one victory away in tying Schumacher for the most wins of all time at 91. By finishing no lower than seventh place through the first nine races of the season, Hamilton leads the standings by 55 points over teammate Valtteri Bottas. Though he is primed for another championship run this season and a shot at making history on the track, Hamilton has yet to confirm his racing plans for the 2021 Formula One season.

Teammate Bottas, who is in his fourth season with Mercedes and achieved a career-best second place in the Drivers’ standings last season, has had a consistent start to this season that started off on a high note when he won the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix in Spielberg. Since winning his eighth career F1 race, Bottas has achieved six additional podium results, including three second-place results, a fifth-place result in the Italian Grand Prix and a season-low 11th-place result in the British Grand Prix. The Nastola, Finland, native trails teammate Hamilton by 55 points as he attempts to become the sixth competitor to win an F1 title while driving for Mercedes. Unlike Hamilton, Bottas is already set to remain with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team for the 2021 Formula One season.

Trailing behind in second place in the Constructors’ standings and with a total of 173 points is the Aston Martin Red Bull Racing team with Max Verstappen and Alexander Albon currently driving for the team. Having achieved four Drivers’ and Constructors’ championships, none since 2013, the team managed by Team Principal Christian Horner has been lurking behind the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari in recent years. With Ferrari struggling to keep pace this season, Red Bull Racing is currently the second-best team in the garage and aims to take the next step forward to return to the top of the standings and back as champions of the world.

After achieving seven career victories in Formula One from 2016 to 2019 and notching a career-best third-place result in the Drivers’ standings last season, Max Verstappen approached the 2020 season with momentum and high expectations to challenge Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas for this year’s title run. His season did not start off on a strong note, however, in the Austrian Grand Prix when his car experienced electrical issues. The 22-year-old Dutch competitor rebounded the following three races by finishing in the podium, including back-to-back runner-up results. In the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix in Silverstone, United Kingdom, he achieved his first victory of the season and became the first non-Mercedes competitor to win in 2020 while recording the 63rd F1 career win for Red Bull Racing. He went on to achieve two additional podium results the following two races, but is coming off back-to-back retirements in two Grand Prix races in Italy. He is situated in third place in the Drivers’ standings behind the two Mercedes competitors and trails Hamilton by 80 points while he continues to pursue his first F1 title. While multiple Formula One competitors have contracts set to expire this season or next season, Verstappen is locked into a contract with Red Bull Racing through 2023.

For Albon, who took over one of Red Bull Racing’s two rides late last season and recorded enough impressive results to earn a full-time seat with Red Bull this season, the first half of the 2020 season has been an up-and-down year for him. During the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix, Albon was involved in a late incident with Lewis Hamilton while battling for a podium spot (marking his second incident with Hamilton since Brazil in 2019). He rebounded the following six races by posting top-10 runs in all of them while achieving a best result of fourth place. After finishing 15th in the Italian Grand Prix, Albon achieved his elusive maiden podium result, third place, in the Tuscan Grand Prix. Albon’s first podium result came in his 30th start in F1 as he became the first Thai competitor to achieve an F1 podium result. Through the first nine races, Albon is in fifth place in the Drivers’ standings as he trails Hamilton by 127 points. Unlike Verstappen, Albon and Red Bull have yet to announce if their partnership will continue beyond this season.

The third-best team in the Constructors’ standings with 106 points is the McLaren F1 Team with Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz Jr. driving for the team. Having achieved 12 drivers’ championships and eight constructors’ titles, none in either category since 2008, the team currently managed by CEO Zak Brown has struggled in keeping pace with the competition for wins and titles since the start of the 2013 season. From 2013 to 2018, the team’s best result in the Constructors’ standings was fifth place (twice) In addition, Kevin Magnussen and Jenson Button recorded the team’s lone podium results during the six-year span. Last season, the competitiveness of the team began to turn around for the better as the team’s two competitors, Sainz and Norris, racked up strong results, including a podium result with Sainz in Brazil, to place the team in fourth place in the Constructors’ standings. By being the third-best team through the first half of this season, McLaren aims to extend their current on-track success, return to competitive form like from the past and contend for their first F1 win since the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix.

For Norris, who achieved 11 top-10 results and concluded last season in 11th place in the Drivers’ standings, the 20-year-old competitor from Bristol, England, kicked off a new season of racing on a positive note by finishing in third place and claiming his maiden podium in F1 as a result of Lewis Hamilton being penalized for a late on-track incident with Alexander Albon and Norris finishing 4.8 seconds behind Hamilton, thus promoting him to the podium. At age 20 years, seven months and 22 days old, Norris became the third-youngest competitor to achieve an F1 podium result. Since his podium result, Norris has finished in the top 10 in all but one event. He is currently in fourth place in the Drivers’ standings, trailing Hamilton by 125 points, and looks to add his name as a potential title threat for this season and for years to come.

For Sainz, who achieved 13 top-10 results, his maiden podium in the Brazilian Grand Prix and a sixth-place result in the Drivers’ standings last season, this season has been an up-and-down season for him. The 26-year-old competitor from Madrid, Spain, opened this season by recording three consecutive top-10 results. For the next four races, however, he only achieved one additional top-10 result and he did not make the starting grid for the Belgian Grand Prix due to a power unit issue. Nonetheless, he rallied the following race by notching a career-best second-place result in the Italian Grand Prix and claiming his second career podium result in Formula One. An early elimination due to a wreck in the recent Tuscan Grand Prix, however, places Sainz in 11th place in the Drivers’ standings, 149 points behind Hamilton. Nonetheless, Sainz aims to join Fernando Alonso, a two-time F1 champion, as the lone competitors from Spain to win a Formula One race. Unlike Norris, who will remain with McLaren next season, Sainz is set to join Scuderia Ferrari for the 2021 season, replacing Sebastian Vettel.

Next is the BWT Racing Point F1 Team, the first team with double-digit points at 92 and currently ranked in fourth place in the standings with Lance Stroll and Sergio “Checo” Perez driving for the team. The team has experienced an abundance of bright on-track moments and results in their second full-time F1 season under the Racing Point banner with Otmar Szafnauer serving as the CEO & Team Principal of the team and with Canadian billionaire businessman Lawrence Stroll supporting the team as a part-owner. The only controversial moment for the team this season was when Racing Point was docked 15 points and fined €400,000 between the two GP events in Silverstone as a result of fielding RP20 race cars at the beginning of this season that had an identical design to the 2019 Mercedes car, a protest that was launched by Renault and upheld by the FIA upon review of the team’s use of rear brake ducts that were not refined while being used into the DNA of the RP19 car. Despite the controversy, 15 top-10 results between three competitors through the first nine races have kept the team in contention of emerging as the third-best team for this season. The team is also set to rebrand as Aston Martin F1 Team in 2021.

For Lance Stroll, the 20-year-old son of Lawrence Stroll and who achieved six top-10 results and a 15th-place result in the Drivers’ standings last season, this season marks his strongest start to a Formula One season compared to his previous three seasons. After retiring in the season opener in the Austrian Grand Prix due to engine issues, Stroll went on a seven-race stretch of finishing inside the top 10. This included a third-place result in the Italian Grand Prix, which marked his first podium achievement since finishing in third place in the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Though he retired in the recent event, the Tuscan Grand Prix, following a late accident, he is in sixth place in the Drivers’ standings, which would mark a career-best result for him, and is 133 points behind Hamilton. Despite a strong start to this season, Stroll has yet to confirm his racing plans for next season.

For Perez, who achieved 11 top-10 results and a 10th-place result in the Drivers’ standings last season, this season marks his strongest start to a new season of racing in three years. The 30-year-old Guadalajara, Mexico, native started the season by notching three consecutive top-10 results. His season, however, took a downhill turn when he was forced to sit out of both Silverstone races and was replaced by Nico Hülkenberg after being tested positive for COVID-19 symptoms. Once he returned to the track, Perez went on to finish in the top 10 through the last four races. His best results have been a pair of fifth-place finishes (Spain and Tuscan GP) as he strives to achieve his first podium result since finishing in third place in the 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Despite his results, Perez will not be remaining with the team that is set to be rebranded to Aston Martin and his future plans in racing is currently unknown.

For Hülkenberg, who was left without a full-time ride for this season following a three-year run with Renault, this season marks his first absence from the season-opening race since he failed to take the starting grid for the 2013 Australian Grand Prix. The opportunity for the Emmerich am Rhein, West Germany, native to return to F1 came during both races at Silverstone when Sergio Perez tested positive for COVID-19 symptoms. For the British Grand Prix, he was due to start in 13th place, but he did not make the grid due to an engine failure. Returning for the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix, Hülkenberg redeemed himself by starting in third place and finishing in seventh place. The seventh-place result marked his 96th top-10 result in his 178th career start in Formula One as he is still pursuing his first elusive podium result. Though Hülkenberg is not a full-time competitor this season and has not raced since August, the six points he recorded at Silverstone are more than Kimi Räikkönen, Antonio Giovinazzi, Kevin Magnussen, Nicholas Latifi, George Russell and Romain Grosjean combined through the first half of this season. Despite his two-race stint at Silverstone, Hülkenberg is still searching for a full-time ride and a return to F1 racing next year.

Rounding out the top five and the first half of the Formula One teams in the Constructors’ standings is the Renault DP World F1 Team, currently with 83 points and with Daniel Ricciardo and Esteban Ocon driving for the team managed by Cyril Abiteboul and Marcin Budkowski. Having won two championships in 2004 and 2005, the team has finished no higher than third place in the standings since winning back-to-back titles. From 2009 to 2019, the team emerged as the fifth-best team in the final Constructors’ standings three times, including last season. This season, through the first nine races, Renault is situated in fifth place in the Constructors’ standings, ironically, and have tallied 11 top-10 results between its two-car lineup. Like the Racing Point organization, Renault is set to be rebranded as Alpine F1 Team and sport the French national colors of red, white and blue on their race cars. The team is also set to feature two-time Formula One champion Fernando Alonso as one of their two competitors for next season as they strive to return to championship contention. The 2021 F1 season will mark Alonso’s return to the sport since he retired in 2018 and his return to Renault since 2009.

For Ricciardo, this season, which marks his second with Renault, started off as a season for him to rebound and reignite his past achievements and competitiveness on the track throughout his career and following a disappointing 2019 season highlighted with eight top-10 results and a ninth-place result in the Drivers’ standings. The season, however, did not start on a high note when he retired early due to overheating issues. Nonetheless, Ricciardo has achieved a total of six top-10 results through the first nine races of this season and he is ranked in seventh place in the Drivers’ standings while trailing Hamilton by 137 points. Finishing as high as fourth place three times on the track indicates how hungry he is in returning to the podium and winning an F1 race for the first time since 2018. Despite the recent strides and strong results on the track, Ricciardo is set to join McLaren next season and be a teammate to Lando Norris.

For Ocon, who made his return to full-time Formula One racing this season following a one-year absence, the 2020 season was a year for him to rejuvenate his career and past success when he drove for Force India/Racing Point F1 Team. The 24-year-old Évreux, France, native started the season with an eighth-place result before he retired the following race due to overheating issues. Over the next seven races, he has achieved four top-10 results, a best result of fifth place, and one additional retirement. He is ranked in 12th place in the Drivers’ standings and is 160 points behind Hamilton while also being 13 points behind in cracking the top-10 mark. Ocon is set to remain with Renault and be a teammate to Fernando Alonso next season.

The team that leads the second half of the 10-team field in this year’s Formula One grid/standings with 66 points is Scuderia Ferrari with Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc currently driving for the team led by Team Principal Mattia Binotto. Having won 16 Constructors’ championships and 15 Drivers’ championships since 1950, the Ferrari powerhouse organization has struggled on the track throughout this season. With the team emerging as the second- or third-best team over the last decade, only two podium results through nine races this season marks their worst since 2014 as the team aims to rebuild itself back into competitive form approaching next season.

For Vettel, a four-time Formula One champion and a 53-time race winner who achieved only one victory and a fifth-place result in the Drivers’ standings last season, the 2020 season marks his slowest start to an F1 season in recent years. He started the season with a 10th-place result in the Austrian Grand Prix. Over the next eight races, Vettel has achieved four additional top-10 results and two retirements. Thus far, his best on-track result is sixth place, which occurred in the Hungarian Grand Prix. He is in 13th place in the Drivers’ standings and trails Hamilton by 173 points with a tall mountain to climb to fight his way back into winning contention. After six seasons with Ferrari, including this season, Vettel is set for a fresh start by joining Aston Martin F1 Team in 2021.

For Leclerc, who is in his second season with Ferrari and achieved his first two victories in Formula One last season before concluding the season in fourth place in the Drivers’ standings, this season has also been a struggle. Unlike Vettel, this season started off on a promising note for Leclerc when he finished in second place in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix. Since then, Leclerc has managed to achieve one additional podium result, third place at the British GP, and two additional top-10 results. Mired within his season are three retirements as he is in eighth place in the Drivers’ standings and trails Hamilton by 141 points. Unlike Vettel, Leclerc is set to remain with Ferrari for next season.

Next is the newly formed Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda team, the last team in the current Constructors’ standings with double-digit points at 53 and with Pierre Gasly and Daniil Kvyat driving for the team. Formerly known as Toro Rosso and as a junior team to Red Bull Racing with the philosophy of providing newcomers a chance to compete in Formula One, the team was rebranded to promote the AlphaTauri fashion brand, a parent company of Red Bull, while continuing to run on Honda engines. In addition to retaining drivers Gasly and Kvyat, Franz Tost remains as Team Principal of the team, Graham Watson remains as Team Manager and Jody Egginton runs as Technical director. On the track this season, the results have been mixed between Gasly and Kvyat from one race to another. The team’s lone highlight has been winning at the Italian Grand Prix in September with Gasly, indicating how primed the team is in pursuing more victories in the near future.

For Gasly, who was demoted from Red Bull Racing to Toro Rosso in the late stages of last season but concluded the season on a high note by scoring his maiden podium in the Brazilian Grand Prix with a second-place run, this season has provided its share of the highs and lows. The 24-year-old Rouen, France, native finished seventh in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix and recorded three additional top-10 results through the Belgium Grand Prix. Then, at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza for the Italian Grand Prix, Gasly shined the brightest of the field when he emerged with the lead late in the race following a stop-and-go penalty involving Lewis Hamilton and held off Carlos Sainz to win his first Formula One career race. With his accomplishment, he became the 109 different competitor to win a Formula One race and the first French F1 competitor to win since Olivier Panis made the last accomplishment in the 1996 Monaco Grand Prix. The win vindicated his resilience to triumph against his struggles and his potential in competing for wins on a weekly basis. Coming off his recent Grand Prix event in Tuscany, Italy, where he was involved in an opening lap multi-car wreck, Gasly is in 10th place in the Drivers’ standings and is 147 points behind Hamilton. Despite the success this season, Gasly has yet to confirm his racing plans for next season and beyond.

For Kvyat, who achieved a podium result last season during the German Grand Prix along with a total of 10 top-10 results before finishing in 13th place in the Drivers’ standings, his results of this season’s first half mirrors his progress from the first nine races of last season. He started the season by finishing 12th in the Austrian Grand Prix. Since then, he recorded four top-10 results, including a best result of seventh place in the Tuscan Grand Prix, and has sustained only one DNF. Despite the progression, he is in 14th place in the standings, 180 points behind Hamilton, and needs to gain 33 points to crack the top 10 in the Drivers’ standings. Like Gasly, Kvyat has yet to confirm his racing plans for next season and beyond.

The first team in line with single-digit points, four, is the Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen team with Kimi Räikkönen and Antonio Giovinazzi driving for the team currently led by Frédéric Vasseur. Since the team began racing under the Alfa Romeo Racing banner in 2019, their two-car lineup have achieved a total of 15 top-10 results through the 2020 Tuscan Grand Prix. Their best results are fourth and fifth place with Räikkönen and Giovinazzi in the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix. Like last season, the team continues to run as the eighth-best team on the grid.

For Räikkönen, who is in his second season with Alfa Romeo and achieved nine top-10 results and a final result of 12th place in the Drivers’ standings last season, just a single top-10 result marks the lowest top-10 results he has recorded through nine races into a season. Having won his first and only F1 title in 2007, Räikkönen’s lone top-10 result this season was a ninth-place result in the Tuscan Grand Prix. He is tied for 16th place in the Drivers’ standings and with his first two points to this season. Räikkönen has yet to announce his racing plans for next season and beyond.

For Giovinazzi, who is in his second full-time season in F1 racing and recorded four top-10 results and a final result of 17th place in the Drivers’ standings last season, the 2020 season started off on a promising note in ninth place. Since then, his next highest result on the track over the next eight races was 14th. In addition, he has sustained two retirements. He is tied for 16th place in the Drivers’ standings with Räikkönen and with two points recorded this season. Like Räikkönen. Giovinazzi has yet to announce his racing plans for the 2021 F1 season.

Trailing behind with only a single team point in ninth place in the Constructors’ standings through the first nine races is the Haas F1 Team with Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean driving for the team led by the team’s principal Guenther Steiner. Compared to their previous four seasons in F1, where the results have been up and down between its two-car lineup, the first half of the 2020 season has been a down season for the team as they continue to struggle in keeping pace with the competition like all of last season.

For Magnussen, who is in his fourth season with the Haas organization and has achieved only four top-10 results last season, just a single top-10 result through the first nine races into an F1 season marks his lowest since 2016. His top-10 result, nonetheless, remains the lone highlight for the Haas team this season. Aside from the top-10 result, Magnussen has finished no higher than 12th place while he has also sustained five retirements this season, including the season opener in Austria and the two recent Grand Prix races in Italy. Currently, the 27-year-old Magnussen from Roskilde, Denmark, has yet to confirm his racing plans for the 2021 F1 season.

For Grosjean, who has been with the Haas F1 team since its inception in 2016 and who notched three top-10 results last season, the 2020 season marks the first time where he has completed the first nine races without a single top-10 result and without recorded points. Grosjean started the season with a retirement in the Austrian Grand Prix. Though he was able to finish the next eight races, he has finished no higher than 12th place (twice). He joins Nicholas Latifi and George Russell as the lone F1 competitors to achieve zero top-10 results through the first nine races of this season. Like Magnussen, Grosjean has yet to announce his racing plans for next season.

Finally, the Williams Racing team occupies the 10th and final spot in the Constructors’ standings with no points recorded this season and with Nicholas Latifi and George Russell driving for the team. Having won seven Drivers’ championships and nine Constructors’ titles, none since 1997, the team slipped back in the standings since finishing in third place in 2015 and have been the 10th-place team on the grid since 2018. Amid a struggling start to this season, the Williams team was acquired by Dorilton Capital, an American investment group, for €152 million. Following the purchase of the team, Claire Williams, Team Principal of Williams, departed from the team following the Italian Grand Prix. Though the team remains under the Williams banner and operates in the United Kingdom, the Williams family is no longer involved in Formula One racing since the team’s inception in 1977 by Sir Frank Williams.

For Latifi, who is in his first full-time season in F1 racing and spent the previous two seasons as a test/reserve competitor, this season started off on a promising note when he finished in 11th place in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix and came up one spot short in recording a point for the Williams team. Since the season opener, he has achieved an additional 11th-place result in the Italian Grand Prix, which marks his highest result this season. Despite the on-track struggles and strives, the good news for Latifi is that he is set to remain with Williams for the 2021 F1 season.

For Russell, a former Formula 2 champion who is currently in his second season in F1 racing and concluded his first full-time season last year in 20th place in the Drivers’ standings, this season started off on a low note when he retired due to fuel pressure issues. Over the next eight F1 races, the 22-year-old King’s Lynn, United Kingdom, native finished in the top 15 three times and his highest result is 11th place, which occurred in the Tuscan Grand Prix. He joins teammate Latifi and Grosjean as the lone F1 competitors to record zero points through the first half of this season. Like Latifi, Russell is set to remain with Williams for the 2021 F1 season.

With the first half of the 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship season complete, the second half of the season will commence on September 27 at Sochi Autodrom for the Russian Grand Prix followed by the return of Nürburgring for the Eifel Grand Prix on October 11 and at Portimão’s Algarve International Circuit for the Portuguese Grand Prix on October 25. Next on the revised schedule will be the Emilia Romangna Grand Prix at Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy, on November 1 followed by the Turkish Grand Prix at Tuzla’s Intercity Istanbul Park on November 15. Formula One will then race at the Bahrain International Circuit for the Bahrain Grand Prix on November 29 followed by the Sakhir Grand Prix at Bahrain’s Outer Circuit layout on December 6. The revised 17-race schedule will conclude at Yas Marina Circuit for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on December 13.

September 18, 2020
Hülkenberg to replace Perez for British Grand Prix

BWT Racing Point F1 team announced that Nico Hülkenberg will be returning to Formula One and replace Sergio Perez for this weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone Circuit.

A native from Emmerich am Rhein, West Germany, Hülkenberg has made 177 career starts in Formula One, spanning back to his debut in 2010. He recorded his first and only career pole to date in 2010 for the Brazilian Grand Prix while driving for the Williams Racing team. From 2012 to 2016, he raced for the Sahara Force India F1 team and the Sauber F1 team. His last time competing in Formula One was last season as a full-time competitor for the Renault DP World F1 team, a team he competed with since 2017. Following the 2019 season, he became a free agent when Renault opted not to renew his contract in favor of Esteban Ocon and was unable to secure a full-time ride in time to compete in this year’s opener at Spielberg, Austria.

Hülkenberg’s return to the sport came a day after Perez tested positive for COVID-19 symptoms following an inconclusive test. The Mexican competitor went into isolation following the inconclusive test that later became a positive test for the virus, but he remains in “good spirits” and is physically stable while continuing to recover.

“I was on my way to the Nürburgring for another racing project when the call from Otmar came,” said Hülkenberg. “That was less than 24 hours ago, so it feels a bit surreal for me right now, but I like a good challenge and this is certainly one. It’s obviously a difficult situation for Racing Point and Checo [Perez]. He’s a buddy of mine, an old team-mate and I wish him a speedy recovery. I’ll step in and try do the best I can for the team!”

“Having to find a replacement for Sergio at short notice is no easy task, but in Nico we’ve got a fantastic supersub who the team knows very well,” Otmar Szafnauer, Racing Point Team Principal, said. “He’s certainly being thrown in at the deep end, but he’s a fast learner and I’m sure he will get up to speed quickly.”

Though he has achieved 94 top-10 career results and 511 points in his previous 177 starts, Hülkenberg continues to pursue his first career podium result in F1. His best on-track result in F1 is fourth place, a result he achieved in the 2012 Belgium Grand Prix, the 2013 Korean Grand Prix and the 2016 Belgium Grand Prix.

With Hülkenberg at Silverstone in time for the first practice session, it remains probable that he will also compete at Silverstone next weekend for the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix with Perez not scheduled to compete next weekend, giving the German time to adjust back into the racing seat of an F1 car and a pair of opportunities to break through for his first podium result in F1 while he also continues to weigh in towards his racing plans for the future.

July 31, 2020
Hamilton steals victory in Bahrain

Lewis Hamilton wasn’t the dominant driver, Sunday, and he probably wouldn’t have won without misfortune befalling Charles Leclerc. But as the old saying goes, “It doesn’t matter how you won. It just matters that you did.”

Leclerc was well on his way to his first career Formula 1 victory, until the energy recovery system failed on his No. 16 Scuderia Ferrari SF90 with 11 laps to go. At that point, he was chum in the water.

Hamilton ran down and passed him going into Turn 14, with 10 to go, and cruised to his 75th career victory.

“We were definitely lucky today, but you have to take it as it comes,” Hamilton said. “Ultimately, I still gave it everything in the race, and I pushed as hard as I could.”

Valtteri Bottas finished runner-up.

Like Hamilton, he didn’t dance around the luck aspect of their finish, especially when he noted that the balance of his car was “beat everywhere.”

“We did no mistake, as a team, and the car was very reliable,” Bottas said. “And that’s the win today. So all the hard work at the factories is paying off, like this.”

A timely safety car saved a podium finish for Leclerc, who was quickly losing time to fourth-place Max Verstappen.

“I’m extremely disappointed, like the whole team, but it happens in the seasons,” he said. “I think we made the best out of it.”

In the moment, he found it difficult to look on the bright side.

“…as I said a lot in the past, I’m never really looking at the result, and I’m more looking at the (indiscernible) of what to do better. Today, third was not our place, but yeah, very happy anyway.”

Sebastian Vettel, after a spin just past halfway and losing his front wing, rallied to a fifth-place finish.

Lando Norris, Kimi Raikkonen, Pierre Gasley, Alexander Albon and Sergio Perez rounded out the Top-10.

Race summary

Vettel took the lead from Leclerc going into Turn 1, on the first lap. On the fifth lap, Leclerc used a run down the pit straight to overtake Vettel going into Turn 1.

After ceding the lead for one lap, Leclerc cycled back to the front on Lap 16.

Hamilton pitted from second on Lap 36. Vettel followed suit on Lap 37. Leclerc and Bottas pitted the next two laps.

For two laps, Hamilton and Vettel battled for third, in Turns 5, 6 and 7. On Lap 38, Hamilton used DRS (drag reduction system) and a massive head wind to overtake Vettel, going into Turn 4.

#F1 #BahrainGP pic.twitter.com/aMN6y6x77W
— Mattzel89 (@Mattzel89) March 31, 2019

“I just gave it everything and braked later than usual and dived down on the outside,” Hamilton said.

LAP 39/57: There's worse to follow for Sebastian Vettel – he and George Russell make contact and Vettel loses his front wing – dramatically! #BahrainGP 🇧🇭 #F1 pic.twitter.com/GkXlzI9FDc
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 31, 2019

On exit, Vettel got loose and spun out. He recovered and drove on. A few moments later, however, Vettel’s front wing fell off and he was forced to pit (rejoined the race in eighth).

This set up the aforementioned finish, in which Leclerc’s power unit had a component failure and Hamilton passed him to win.

“It happens. It’s part of motorsports,” Leclerc said. “Unfortunately, today was not our day, but I’m confident that our team has done an amazing job to recover the lack of pace in Australia.”

“I’m sure it was a devastating result for (Leclerc), obviously, because had done the job to win the race,” Hamilton said.

What else happened

Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel Ricciardo both suffered power failures in Turn 1, with four laps to go. This necessitated a safety car period, and the race ended behind the safety car (the eighth time in Formula 1 history).

Nuts and bolts

The race lasted one hour, 34 minutes and 21 seconds, at an average speed of 122.047 mph.

There was one safety car period for four laps and four lead changes among three different drivers.

Bottas leaves Bahrain with a one-point lead over Hamilton in the drivers championship.

Mercedes leaves with a 39-point lead over Ferrari in the constructors championship.

The next race is in China on April 14.

March 31, 2019