There are still important seats for the 2023 season available.
The grid for the 2023 Formula 1 season could still include the occasional surprise in terms of drivers. At least three teams have free seats at this point in the year, and there is talk of the possible return of two ‘old acquaintances’ from the Great Circus, such as Antonio Giovinazzi and Nico Hülkenberg.
Looking ahead to next season, there are five seats that are officially free, which are currently occupied by Fernando Alonso at Alpine, Mick Schumacher at Haas, Nicholas Latifi at Williams, Guanyu Zhou at Alfa Romeo and Yuki Tsunoda at Alpha Tauri… although it is expected that these last two will continue at least one more year in their current teams.
As for the open spots at Alpine, Haas and Williams, there are endless candidates who could fill them and do well.
Among them are drivers like Nyck de Vries, who surprised with a fantastic performance in his F1 debut at the Italian GP, the American Colton Herta, who is negotiating with Alpha Tauri and also with Alpine… and two old acquaintances, such as Giovinazzi (former Alfa Romeo driver) and Hülkenberg (former Force India, Sauber, Aston Martin and Renault driver).
The situation at this point is that Alpha Tauri wants to count on Herta – although rumors suggest that the chances have fallen in recent hours – to release Pierre Gasly in the direction of Alpine, who would like to form a 100% French team next year. coming.
The main impediment is that Herta has not gathered the necessary points in the Indycar to obtain the super license. He is missing five, which he could obtain if he participates in free practice between now and the end of the course or if he takes part in races that are part of the FIA scores, such as Formula Toyota.
Resolving the ‘Herta Case’, we would occupy at least two free positions in F1 in 2023, such as those of Alpine and Alpha Tauri.
If that does not happen, another possibility would open up, which would be Antonio Giovinazzi’s return to F1 with the Alpine team, with whom he has been negotiating and it is rumored that he will participate in a test with other candidates for the seat, such as Jack Doohan, Nyck de Vries or Colton Herta.
To this list, we should add Mick Schumacher, who is believed not to continue at Haas next season, and who has also spoken with Alpine.
If he leaves his seat free in the American team, the favorites for his position are Antonio Giovinazzi due to his links with Ferrari or Nico Hülkenberg, who would return to F1 after two years away as a starter, although this year he already replaced Sebastian Vettel in two races when he tested positive for COVID-19.
Hülkenberg has preferred to continue acting as a reserve driver for the Aston Martin team for the last two years instead of opting to win races in other categories, such as the World Endurance Championship, where he already triumphed in 2015 as a Porsche driver, taking victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Despite being away, he is still thinking about F1.
Another team in search of talent is Williams, which is believed to finally fire Nicholas Latifi at the end of this season due to lack of results. In the Italian GP, in which Albon left his seat to De Vries due to the appendicitis that he suffered from, the Dutchman passed over the Canadian despite making his debut. Nyck even scored, leaving his new teammate at the back of the grid.
De Vries, who already has a relationship with Williams, should be one of the candidates for Latifi’s position, but other options such as Mick Schumacher, Nico Hülkenberg or Antonio Giovinazzi cannot be ruled out.
Nor can it be ruled out that Daniel Ricciardo opts for one of the aforementioned seats, after having left the McLaren team through the back door. However, rather than move to a lower-middle table team, Ricciardo would have even thought of playing a role as a reserve driver in a major team (like Mercedes) before thinking of returning to ownership in 2024.
