F1 2027 grid: The 12 open seats as Carlos Sainz signs mega deal

Max Verstappen looks up surrounded by Mercedes, McLaren and Red Bull logos — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 2027 grid: The 12 seats still open as Carlos Sainz signs mega deal

There are still a ton of seats available for 2027

Graham Shaw Consultant Editor

Digital sports specialist running global brands for 30 years

Wednesday 19 August 2026 20:19

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Everybody is still waiting on Max Verstappen to decide his future with TWELVE seats still open on the 2027 grid.

The mighty Dutchman's future is the biggest chip to fall in silly season 2026 as he ponders whether to stay with Red Bull or potentially join Mercedes or McLaren.

The 28-year-old Verstappen wants to be sure Red Bull can provide him with a car capable of challenging for race wins and championships from 2027 onwards. With the exit clause in his contract now active, he is free to test the open market.

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And what a market it is, with only 10 of the 22 seats currently filled, following the decision of Alex Albon to sign a new deal with Williams, swiftly followed by team-mate Carlos Sainz.

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2027 F1 Grid: The seats that are 'confirmed', and those that are open

Given the state of flux in F1's driver market, it is much easier to talk about which seats are filled rather than the majority which are still open for 2027. There are only nine who '100 percent' have a confirmed seat for next season.

McLaren are set per F1 with reigning world champion Lando Norris alongside Australian Oscar Piastri, though even that would change should the team in papaya eventually land Verstappen. All contracts remember can be broken/torn up.

Ferrari are also currently set for 2027 with Charles Leclerc having recently signed a long-term contract extension (believed to be through 2030) while seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has a multi-year contract.

Rookie team Cadillac is the other team with two drivers confirmed for 2027 with Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez under contract. Remember again that everything is subject to change with Bottas under pressure and Perez linked with Williams.

That leaves just four more seats which are 100percent filled as it stands - and they are Frenchman Pierre Gasly at Alpine, Albon and Sainz at Williams and then guess who, Verstappen at Red Bull.

Now remember this is where it all gets very blurred. Verstappen is currently contracted to Red Bull through 2028, but that exit clause means his status for 2027 is anything but set in stone. Quite the complex landscape to navigate.

There are other drivers (several) who will be in the familiar position for many F1 stars of waiting on a team to activate options for 2027. Often contracts will have a guaranteed year plus a team option for a second.

On Wednesday August 19, 2026, the current 2027 grid with confirmed drivers looks like this:

2027 F1 driver market

12 seats open

Drivers shown as Confirmed have been included in F1's official 2027 grid update. All remaining seats are currently listed as TBC.

McLaren

Lando Norris Confirmed

Oscar Piastri Confirmed

Mercedes

TBC

Red Bull

Max Verstappen Confirmed

TBC

Ferrari

Charles Leclerc Confirmed

Lewis Hamilton Confirmed

Williams

Alex AlbonConfirmed

Carlos SainzConfirmed

Racing Bulls

TBC

Aston Martin

TBC

Haas

TBC

Audi

TBC

Alpine

Pierre Gasly Confirmed

TBC

Cadillac

Sergio Perez Confirmed

Valtteri Bottas Confirmed

Verstappen, Alonso and the big dominoes still to fall

Verstappen's next move of course is the really big one - should he leave Red Bull then his seat becomes open and he likely puts somebody out at Mercedes or McLaren. The smart money would be on George Russell or Oscar Piastri.

Intriguingly F1 still has both seats at Mercedes listed as not confirmed, which gives us a hint about the contractual situations of Russell and his team-mate Kimi Antonelli.

There is one other fact about Verstappen which means this is a silly season like no other. His exit clause reportedly means he does not have to make a final decision until October - horribly late for those other chips to be falling as a result.

The other big domino still to fall is two-time world champion Fernando Alonso, who is currently pondering his future at Aston Martin. Retirement is an option at the age of 45 while the Spaniard has also been linked with a Flavio Briatore reunion at Alpine.

Fernando Alonso is pondering his future at Aston Martin.

The other big name who is mentioned regularly right now is another Spaniard, Carlos Sainz. He has been linked with Audi and Red Bull (as a Verstappen replacement) while some reports have him currently negotiating at one-year extension at struggling Williams.

It is almost unprecedented for so many seats still to be open at this stage, but we expect some of that to change relatively quickly.

The sport returns from its summer break at Zandvoort next weekend as the final Dutch Grand Prix (for now) takes centre stage. It would be no surprise for some announcements to be made in the paddock as things become a little clearer.

But until Verstappen finally nails his colours to a mast, is anything really clear at all?

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Written by

Graham Shaw - Consultant Editor

Digital sports leader with 30 years of senior level experience running global brands. Built sportinglife.com to be a behemoth in the UK as well as being in charge of the Planet Sport network of sites including planetf1.com, football365.com, teamtalk.com and planetrugby.com. Then grew goal.com to be the world's biggest soccer website in 18 languages and 37 territories. Was GM of Portals for Perform Group (now DAZN) with overall responsibility for sportingnews.com, spox.de and voetbalzone.nl.

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F1 Max Verstappen