F1 2020 Season

Hephaestus said:
I'd be shocked if Hamilton moved, think he'll stick with Mercedes for the rest of his career. Not seen anything more about Toto leaving Mercedes either so I assume that he's staying and Russell will take Bottas' seat so they can compare him to Lewis. I hope they go for Ricciardo, think he's a better driver than Sainz but I wonder if his age will work against him, he'll already be 31 by the start of next season. Wonder if they might go for Giovinazzi though just so that they can go back to having a clear number 1 driver in Leclerc, avoid the drama of last year even if it does risk being Gasly at Red Bull all over again.

As for Vettel I think if Ricciardo or Sainz replace him then Vettel might end up joining Renault/Mclaren. Otherwise, think he'll just walk away for at least a year.
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I wouldn’t say Ricciardo’s age is too much of a problem. Good drivers seem to be able to go into their late thirties pretty easily these days. I would think there’d be too much friction between the two if anything. Sainz does make sense which would be a shame as it looks like McLaren are on the up. Ferrari are hugely traditional though so surely Giovinazzi stands a chance? My outside bet would be Ocon. I think he’ll do well at Renault. Was also thinking Perez but again I don’t think he’ll fit with LeClerc. The regulation changes may also play a part.
 
Jack-C20 said:
I wouldn’t say Ricciardo’s age is too much of a problem. Good drivers seem to be able to go into their late thirties pretty easily these days. I would think there’d be too much friction between the two if anything. Sainz does make sense which would be a shame as it looks like McLaren are on the up. Ferrari are hugely traditional though so surely Giovinazzi stands a chance? My outside bet would be Ocon. I think he’ll do well at Renault. Was also thinking Perez but again I don’t think he’ll fit with LeClerc. The regulation changes may also play a part.
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I was thinking his age might make Ferrari look elsewhere if they are after a long term partner for Leclerc but yeah, his age won't matter for a few years at least.

If they do go for Giovinazzi, wonder if Ferrari will give the Alfa slot to Mick Schumacher. His performance last year won't have done him any favours, though his first year in F3 was similarly mediocre before his excellent second year.
 
Hephaestus said:
I was thinking his age might make Ferrari look elsewhere if they are after a long term partner for Leclerc but yeah, his age won't matter for a few years at least.

If they do go for Giovinazzi, wonder if Ferrari will give the Alfa slot to Mick Schumacher. His performance last year won't have done him any favours, though his first year in F3 was similarly mediocre before his excellent second year.
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It’s definitely an interesting one. There could be a few moves happening which would be good as the most recent off-season was pretty boring in terms of driver swaps. I didn’t really touch on it in my initial post but I’m much more interested to see where Vettel goes. A midfield team seeing Vettel available could be a good excuse to really try and push the big three. I hope he stays on the grid one way or another, I’ve always admired him as a driver and personality.
 
Hephaestus said:
I'd be shocked if Hamilton moved, think he'll stick with Mercedes for the rest of his career. Not seen anything more about Toto leaving Mercedes either so I assume that he's staying and Russell will take Bottas' seat so they can compare him to Lewis. I hope they go for Ricciardo, think he's a better driver than Sainz but I wonder if his age will work against him, he'll already be 31 by the start of next season. Wonder if they might go for Giovinazzi though just so that they can go back to having a clear number 1 driver in Leclerc, avoid the drama of last year even if it does risk being Gasly at Red Bull all over again.

As for Vettel I think if Ricciardo or Sainz replace him then Vettel might end up joining Renault/Mclaren. Otherwise, think he'll just walk away for at least a year.
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I think with Giovinazzi you can say goodbye to spots 1 and 2 in the constructors, he’s just not good enough.

If Ferrari want a solid number 2 who will accumulate points, not make too many mistakes and not rock the boat with Le Clerc, how about Hulk?
 
I wonder where Vettel goes. He’s been poor for around two years now.
 
Rooney1987 said:
Reading Sebs statement sounds like he could retire.
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I wouldn't be surprised. He could have a few more years left at the top level of the sport if he wanted but to win a title in a car that isn't Mercedes or Ferrari would probably require a monumental achievement and complete dedication and energy expense. With everything that has happened it probably just isn't worth it anymore to try and do that. He's won the Championship before, holds a bunch of records (Some that will be broken and some that will likely stay unbroken for a long time) and anything more is just an extension of his already fantastic achievements. I wouldn't be shocked if similar things happened in other sports - people retiring a bit earlier due to a shift in perspective.
 
I'm not sure he'd retire, but it certainly sounds like he make take a year out and refresh himself. Come back then if there's something interesting for him in F1, for example a resurgent McClaren. Or he could just jump back in at the start of the new regulations when there's a bit more of a level playing field across the teams.
 
Ferrari should just go for George Russell. Don't feck about with some older guys who will not behave and let Leclerc rule the team.
 
Grinner said:
Ferrari should just go for George Russell. Don't feck about with some older guys who will not behave and let Leclerc rule the team.
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Russell is a contracted Mercedes junior driver and is effectively "on loan" to Williams so they wouldn't let him go. I can see Russell replacing Bottas at the end of the season and Bottas going to Ferrari though for the reason you said above. Bottas has shown he can behave as a number 2 driver.
 
How the feck have Ferrari had two all-time drivers for 5 years a piece and not win them anything in Alonso and Vettel?Although some of the magic Alonso did was insane - shame it never got over the line just once.

But both went to Ferrari to cement a legacy and it slipped away somehow. Obviously both are up there regardless.
 
Just can't see Hamilton moving now, everything he talks about is how happy he is at the team and you can see that in his performances since Nico left. A happy Hamilton is fast, why would he jump ship from a marquee he's been with since he was a boy. He doesn't really have anything to prove, I would actually love to see him in a Ferrari but I don't think the timing is right. I always thought he might give it a try to motivate himself in his twilight years.

Charles is their guy now, Ferrari will probably get someone that can fall in line behind him, that's always worked better for them as a team in the past.

Vettel has had a great career whatever he decides next.
 
sun_tzu said:
Vettell to Merc and Hamilton to Ferrari?... Long shot but not impossible
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Hamilton won't be leaving Mercedes until he's won more titles than Schumacher or the car isn't competitive, whichever comes first.
 
Eddie Jordan said Ham to Ferrari and Mercedes to leave a few weeks back didn't he?
 
Vettel just isnt worth it to challenge Lewis anymore. 2018 should have been his if not for his silly mistakes.

Lewis to Ferrari, now thats a challenge. Even if Leclerc is waiting on the wind, Lewis is a safe bet for title.
 
Could Ferrari turn to Kimi again ? He left basically because they wanted Leclerc and Vettel was still there but now suddenly there's one seat up for grabs
 
As for Vettel future, I think it's either Mclaren or a year out. I doubt he would want to go back to Red Bull since he wouldn't do better than he did before and Renault hasn't show enough progress last year.

Mclaren could in theory offer him a project of a good team in midfield with promise to challenge upfront in about two years. Whether Vettel would want to be part of such a project is another matter.
 
Luke1995 said:
Could Ferrari turn to Kimi again ? He left basically because they wanted Leclerc and Vettel was still there but now suddenly there's one seat up for grabs
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Only reason he stayed around was because he enjoyed being partners with Seb.

He hates the Ferrari circus and won't be going back there for a third time. He's basically living his dream life at Alfa Romeo, just driving and none of that mandated media events and sponsors interviews that Ferrari has all race weekend.
 
gormless said:
I have no idea if Mick Schumacher is even any good (I read somewhere on Reddit that Ralf's son is actually the better prospect), but damn would I get a bit emotional seeing a Schumacher in a Ferrari
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Neither of them have shown the kind of consistency people like Max, Charles and George have shown coming through the ranks. They both need to grow a hell of a lot more to get into contention for an F1 seat, let alone a Ferrari drive.
 
Leg-End said:
Sainz to Ferrari, Ricciardo to McLaren is doing the rounds.
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Would take that, though I don't know if McLaren can afford whatever he's getting at Renault at the moment.
 
Most people seem to really liked Ricciardo, but after Drive to Survive etc I just find him smug. Not a huge fan of him ending up at Mclaren. Maybe im being unfair
 
Looking like Ferrari maybe seeing Sainz as a good backup driver to Leclerc
 
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