F1 Silly Season: Max Verstappen, Fernando Alonso and every driver move tracked

If you are an old head in F1 you will be fully aware of what 'silly season' is, but if you are new around here strap in for one of the craziest things about the sport which doesn't even take place on a track.

Effectively, the unofficial silly season is the transfer market you see in football - but for drivers. But while in the Premier League there are 500 places up for grabs, in F1 there are just 22 and this means many drivers are dependent on each other for who goes where.

It tends to start around early May once the new season is under way and teams start to understand where they sit in the pecking order, and typically continues until the summer break or shortly after.

This year's edition is particularly manic with many drivers out of contract at the end of the season.

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Max Verstappen, the biggest domino of all, has fallen

Max Verstappen should never have been a factor in this year's silly season. He had a contract at Red Bull until 2028, which in theory should have made him untouchable.

However, Red Bull's dire season meant Verstappen's exit clause came into play when he went into the summer break outside the top two in the Drivers' standings.

There should have been no shortage of potential suitors for the four-time world champion, but it didn't appear to play out quite like that. Ferrari were locked into Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc while Mercedes and McLaren were apparently happy with their 2027 lineups.

So in the end Verstappen did re-sign with Red Bull, announcing a massive extension through to 2030. As yet we do not know if the new deal still contains an exit clause, but we do know Verstappen will be at Red Bull in 2027.

How each F1 team looks in 2026 silly season

McLaren

Lando Norris (Contract expiry: 2027)

Lando Norris looks safe enough at McLaren. He has been in the team's system for nearly a decade, is the reigning world champion and maintains a slight edge on team-mate Oscar Piastri. He is also now reportedly in talks over a new deal worth $70million per season.

Oscar Piastri (2028)

Has a year longer on his deal than Norris, but looked like being the odd man out had the papaya team pursued Verstappen.

The most likely destination for Piastri would have been Red Bull in a simple swap, but he is now safe in his seat for 2027.

Mercedes

George Russell (2027)

Now technically Russell does have a contract until 2027, but it appears there is flexibility for either side to have a bit of freedom on their options for next year. Russell is in a predicament heading into the summer break as he is the weaker of the Mercedes drivers, having been off the pace of team-mate Kimi Antonelli for much of the season so far.

With Verstappen set at Red Bull, Russell would now appear to be safe again for 2027.

Kimi Antonelli (2026)

The world championship leader's place at Mercedes has been strengthened thanks to an amazing start to the season which sees him heading the title race at the summer break.

He is one of the prize jewels on the grid right now, but Mercedes have one of the best cars so the expiring contract at the end of the year won't be too much of an issue. The obvious Italian lure of Ferrari is a threat at some point, but not for 2027.

One thing is for sure, at some stage very soon Antonelli will get PAID in a big way.

Red Bull

Max Verstappen (2030)

As we've explained already in this article, the Verstappen sweepstakes is over, for now at least. The four-time world champion is contracted through to 2030.

Now he will hope that Red Bull can improve their car and restock their talent pool after losing the likes of Christian Horner, Adrian Newey, Helmut Marko and more.

Isack Hadjar (2026)

Given how volatile the second Red Bull seat has been in the last two years, chewing up and spitting out Sergio Perez, Liam Lawson and Tuki Tsunoda, only a one-year contract for Hadjar wasn't much of a surprise. However, the Frenchman has performed well in poor machinery alongside Verstappen and for once the driver uncertainty at Red Bull is on the other side of the garage.

Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton (2027)

Amazing that early in the season Hamilton was having to talk about people trying to force him to retire. Now he is the chief challenger in the F1 title fight. With a deal until at least the end of 2027 his Ferrari seat is as safe as it has ever been.

Charles Leclerc (2030)

By contrast, Leclerc had never had it so bad at Ferrari until his superb win at the British Grand Prix. Yet, the Monegasque driver has only just penned a long-term deal at Ferrari until at least 2030 - the longest on the entire grid. Ferrari’s 2027 lineup suddenly looks about the most locked in of all the teams.

Williams

Alex Albon (2027)

Albon has re-signed to commit his future to the team for 2027 despite doubts about the long-term viability of the Williams project. He says he is still very much committed to the 'transformation' of the once iconic brand, which is good news for team principal James Vowles.

Carlos Sainz (Multi-year)

Sainz finally committed his future to the team by signing what is reported to be a huge multi-year deal on Wednesday August 19. The deal - which reportedly includes 'a champion's salary' of up to 30million Euro per season PLUS exit clauses - puts the pressure on Williams to really deliver to keep the 31-year-old Spaniard happy.

Racing Bulls

Liam Lawson (2026)

Having been ditched by Red Bull after just two races in 2025, Lawson is no longer flavour of the month at the team. He has enjoyed a good start to 2026 in outscoring rookie team-mate Arvid Lindblad, but he is only contracted until the end of the season. Racing Bulls have denied reports linking Nikola Tsolov to replace him, but the Red Bull family are known for their ruthless decisions on drivers.

Arvid Lindblad (2026)

Lindblad has settled in well to his first season in F1 and despite having only a one-year deal has already probably shown Red Bull enough to merit a second season at the junior team.

Aston Martin

Fernando Alonso (2026)

The second big story of silly season is whether Alonso continues in F1 beyond 2027. Early indications suggest he will, and it looks likely to be with Aston Martin in a determination to strike it rich with a Newey car.

The only rumoured other landing spot had been a Flavio Briatore reunion at Alpine, but with Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto now confirmed for 2027, that is off the table.

So it looks like Alonso's decision now is either sign a new Aston deal, or retire from the sport at the age of 45.

Lance Stroll (2026)

Stroll is also out of contract at the end of the year but it would be a major shock if Lawrence Stroll decided to ditch his son, who has driven for the team since its inception in 2021.

Haas

Ollie Bearman (2026)

Ferrari have one eye on the impressive Bearman as part of their young driver programme, but with no room in the Maranello inn he is likely to continue at Haas for 2027.

Esteban Ocon (2026)

Ocon is one of the drivers facing the most pressure to retain a seat in 2027. He is being soundly beaten by Bearman and team boss Ayao Komatsu even had to shut down rumours they had fallen out, with rumours linking the likes of Yuki Tsunoda to an F1 return.

There are several potential replacements being mooted for Ocon - including Ferrari Driver Academy's Brazilian youngster Rafael Camara, McLaren reserve driver Leonardo Fornaroli and Toyota-backed Ryo Hirakawa.

Audi

Nico Hulkenberg (2027)

Audi have had a pretty ordinary start to life in F1 but there is little suggestion they are looking for new names heading into 2027 as both drivers are on multi-year deals. Sainz has been linked to the project and if that is the case, the ageing Hulkenberg would be at the most risk of losing his seat. He looks safe as it stands though.

Gabriel Bortoleto (2027)

Bortoleto is still learning his trade at Audi and he has so far impressed during his second season in F1. The Brazilian may have a contract for next year already but he is at the right team at the right time and could reap the rewards of major Audi progress in the next few seasons.

Alpine

Pierre Gasly (2028)

Gasly looks in it for the long haul at Alpine, where he has settled nicely since joining in 2023 after leaving the Red Bull programme. A Monaco podium this year has boosted his reputation again so if there is any driver having to make way at Alpine, it isn’t him.

Franco Colapinto (2027)

After a horrific and pointless first season, Colapinto has improved slightly in 2026 and ultimately he improved enough to earn another year at Alpine.

On August 27 it was confirmed that the young Argentine will continue alongside Gasly next season.

Cadillac

Sergio Perez (2027)

It’s difficult to gauge how good of a job Perez is doing when Cadillac’s potential right now is being no better than second slowest. One thing for sure, he is getting the better of his team-mate and that means he is looking good to see out his multi-year deal with the team.

Valtteri Bottas (2027)

Bottas has a similar deal to Perez but has been off the pace so far, meaning his future has been in doubt not just for 2027 but for the rest of the season too. However, there are no obvious replacements mid-season and it is a suggestion Cadillac have ‘strongly’ refuted. The big takeaway though is that Perez is looking a lot more comfortable at the team than Bottas.

The 2027 grid, as it stands, looks like this:

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Written by

Dan Ripley - Global Editor

I've been a massive F1 fan since the mid 1990s and continue to study the history of the sport long before that. As an experienced motor sport reporter covering F1, MotoGP and the LeMans 24 Hour race, being part of GPFans has allowed me to work with a diverse team with all sorts of different backgrounds in watching the sport and given me a greater appreciation of F1.

View full biography

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