Alex & Topher predict the 2027 F1 grid
- Alex Johnston
- 9 minutes ago
- 10 min read
We’re still very early into a new set of regulations in a new season - but rumours of change to regulations, discontented drivers and scrutiny from team bosses toward their drivers mean the rumour mill ramps up. With that, we think it’s time to see who we think will or won’t be on the move for 2027.
McLaren
Alex: Oscar Piastri & Lando Norris
Not any explanation needed here. These two are absolutely set in stone as teammates, and came together stronger after a months long title battle in 2025. I did debate Piastri to Aston, who need a leader, but their backstep with Honda is probably enough to keep the Aussie happy at McLaren, for now.
Topher: Oscar Piastri & Lando Norris
I agree with Alex on this one. McLaren has one of the strongest driver line-ups on the grid and I don't see any reason why they will change.
Mercedes
AJ: Kimi Antonelli & Gabriel Bortoleto
The first of the changes. Antonelli, for me, keeps his seat and with a strong 2026 usurps current teammate George Russell.
Russell won’t like losing his team leader status and departs the German team, and is replaced by up and comer Gabriel Bortoleto who’d be entering his third season. At 19 and 21 - the Mercedes line up would be set for the foreseeable.
TS: Kimi Antonelli & George Russell
2026 Formula 1 champion Antonelli will inevitably be retained by the Silver Arrows for 2027, but I have to disagree with Alex and predict that Russell will stay on with the team.
If Russell does get beaten to the title by his younger teammate, I don't see him backing down from the challenge of getting the upper hand back in 2027 and a change of team would hurt his chances more than help them.
Ferrari
AJ: Charles Leclerc & Oliver Bearman
Lewis Hamilton has spoken of his enjoyment of being back to more wheel-to-wheel racing, but he’s also smart enough to know by now that Ferrari are unlikely to be able to help him lift title number eight.
Ferrari’s golden boy, Charles Leclerc, obviously retains his seat with the Scuderia and joining him, Ollie Bearman.
Bearman would be a perfect replacement for Hamilton and is already adored by the Ferrari fans and hierarchy - and has seriously impressed many with his Haas performances so far. A shoo-in.
TS: Charles Leclerc & Oliver Bearman
I'm torn. While I'm certain we will see Leclerc in Ferrari red once again, the other seat very much hinges on Hamilton.
If the seven-time world champion had begun the season in a similar fashion to 2025, then I'd be 100% saying he'll retire at the end of the season and be replaced by Bearman. However, Hamilton seems to be enjoying his racing again and that could prolong his career in 2027 and beyond.
Should Bearman wait another year in the wings? Maybe, but given just how good he is proving to be it could be safely assumed that Ferrari wants to promote him sooner rather than later, which could prompt Hamilton into retirement.
Red Bull
AJ: Isack Hadjar & Álex Palou
Max Verstappen has been very open in his displeasure at driving these new regulation cars. It’s very likely the Dutchman takes a break after this season and as such, change will come at Red Bull.
Isack Hadjar has started well, not a million miles off the pace of Verstappen and fairly consistent finishing positions. For context, by this stage of last season Red Bull had already dumped Liam Lawson.
To replace a four time World Champion is no easy task - but how about a four time IndyCar Champion? Álex Palou has spoken of his desire to race in F1 and Red Bull have gambled on a driver before, so why not now again? He’s said previously he’d only consider F1 if it was for a big team too. That all said, I don’t believe for one second Palou is a gamble…he is world class.
TS: Isack Hadjar & Liam Lawson
While I can see Palou doing a mega job in Formula 1, I just don't think he'll give up his IndyCar ride when he is nigh-on unbeatable at the moment.
What I do think will happen is Verstappen will call time on his F1 career. The writing has been on the wall for a while and the Dutchman is very clearly not enjoying this current formula. He has nothing left to prove in F1, so time for him to move on and tackle Le Mans.
Hadjar has done enough to warrant another term with the main Red Bull team, having run closer to Verstappen than his predecessors. As for his teammate, Liam Lawson was unceremoniously dumped by Red Bull last season but he has bounced back very well. Should Max move on, I can see a second chance for the Kiwi.
Aston Martin
AJ: George Russell & Lance Stroll
Fernando Alonso is not the type to continue if he realises it’s not going to work, and it certainly isn’t working right now - I think the 44 year old will call it a day, maybe to focus first on achieving that elusive Triple Crown.
To replace him, Aston needs a leader and popular driver rolled into one and George Russell fits the mould. The poster boy for British racing now, despite Lando Norris being the reigning champion, Russell and Aston Martin seems to go hand in hand very well.
Lance Stroll’s position in the team seems to be tenured, and if he chooses to leave or stay of his own volition - Aston will deal with it then/if it happens. Not yet, anyway.
TS: Lance Stroll & Jak Crawford
Alonso was sticking around to see how Aston Martin gets on with the new regulations, and it's safe to say it's not going well. Will he hang around for longer? Probably not.
Lance “Nepotism” Stroll will of course get another season with the team, while his teammate could be any of a few. Previously I had suggested that Yuki Tsunoda would end up at Aston Martin due to the Honda links. While not out of the question, I believe the team is more likely to promote from within and give Jak Crawford his debut, with the American already completing FP1 sessions.
Williams
AJ: Carlos Sainz & Leonardo Fornaroli
Carlos Sainz is the driver Williams needed but under the previous regulation was matched closely by current teammate Alex Albon.
Albon now though has admitted his driving style may not suit the new regulations and as such, may depart for pastures new.
Replacing him, a ‘loan’ signing from McLaren; Reigning F2 champion Leonardo Fornaroli could be a part of McLaren’s future but in order to do so, he needs experience. Williams’ need for a driver could see them hand the Italian an exciting opportunity.
TS: Carlos Sainz & Alex Albon
I like Alex's Fornaroli suggestion, but in all honesty I think the Italian's supreme consistency would serve McLaren better in its upcoming Hypercar program which is due to start in 2027.
As for Williams, I see a continuation of the same driver line-up into next season. Both are well-embedded into the outfit and keeping both would make sense as Williams looks to move further up the pecking order.
Audi
AJ: Liam Lawson & Nico Hülkenberg
Bortoleto’s departure sees Audi require a replacement and like Alpine’s Pierre Gasly - it could hand an opportunity to do his best racing for a team outwith the Red Bull family for Liam Lawson.
The New Zealander landed on his feet going back to Racing Bulls after his short Red Bull stint but maybe moving on from Red Bull is his best bet to forge a longer career in F1.
TS: Nico Hülkenberg & Gabriel Bortoleto
One more season of this driver pairing in 2027, then I believe Hülkenberg will move on with Bortoleto becoming the team leader in 2028 alongside Freddie Slater.
Hülkenberg is one of the elder statesmen of the sport but still has a lot to offer, his experience undoubtedly proving valuable to Audi, while Bortoleto is already showing what he's made of ahead of what could be a highly successful career.
Alpine
AJ: Pierre Gasly & Alex Dunne
The aforementioned Gasly has been the star for the French team since he moved there from the Red Bull setup, outperforming the car on many occasions as well as teammates. Something of an immovable object for the time being.
Next to Gasly, we’ll have a rookie - Alex Dunne. The young Irishman impressed in his first Formula 2 season, winning multiple races as he drove under McLaren colours but has now moved to Alpine’s Academy and is strongly in line to replace Franco Colapinto for 2027.
Colapinto has shown signs of improvements, but many of his performances haven’t matched the high expectations of Flavio Briatore regularly enough. He’ll do well wherever he ends up.
TS: Pierre Gasly & Alex Dunne
I fully agree with Alex on this one. Gasly is the spearhead of the Alpine team at the moment with some unbelievable performances, but Colapinto, while improving, isn't at the same level.
The Argentine will see out the 2026 season I'm sure, but should Alex Dunne continue to prove his speed in Formula 2 he might well be called up to an F1 seat for next season. The only thing against this prediction is Dunne's temperament, which is known to be rubbing a lot of people up the wrong way.
Racing Bulls
AJ: Arvid Lindblad & Nikola Tsolov
Arvid Lindblad has enjoyed a rapid race from Formula 3, to Formula 2 and now into F1 paddock where he has already caught the eye, not least reaching Q3 and points on debut in Australia. I expect he’ll continue to make improvements through the season but isn’t quite ready to be moved up to the top team yet. One to watch.
Nikola Tsolov could become the first Bulgarian to race in Formula 1 if all goes well for him in F2 this season and he replaces Liam Lawson. He’s already got a race win in F2 this year and will hope to keep improving as the year goes on. He’s been known for a little bit of petulance and aggression while driving, very similar to a certain current Red Bull driver in their early career.
TS: Arvid Lindblad & Nikola Tsolov
Already proving he has what it takes, Lindblad surely will remain on the F1 grid in 2026. With my prediction of Lawson returning to Red Bull, he will need a new teammate.
Next on the Red Bull junior ladder is Nikola Tsolov and the Bulgarian is already a race winner in Formula 2. If he keeps up those performances, he'll be hard for Red Bull to ignore.
Haas
AJ: Yuki Tsunoda & Rafael Câmara
Esteban Ocon has already spoken of the high expectations with Haas, and the expectation put on him by boss Ayao Komatsu - admitting he maybe isn’t doing quite enough. Personally I’d say he’s doing okay, but is being outperformed by his teammate Ollie Bearman, more often than not. F1 is ruthless and change is common and inevitable.
I can see the links with Toyota pulling in Yuki Tsunoda to race for the American team. Toyota’s involvement screams out for a Japanese driver and Tsunoda is their best option, just ahead of Ayumu Iwasa and current reserve Ryo Hirakawa. He’d be a stellar signing.
Next to him, another Ferrari junior in the form of reigning F3 champion Rafael Câmara. The young Brazilian has a very bright future and if he performs well in F2 this year there’s no reason Ferrari won’t place him at Haas as they did with Bearman.
TS: Esteban Ocon & Rafael Camara
Should Bearman move onto Ferrari, Haas will want some continuity in its driver line-up. They've tried an all-rookie pairing before and look how that went…
In this scenario, Ocon will get another season while the highly-rated Brazilian Rafael Camara will join him. One look at his junior record to date and you just know he's destined for Formula 1.
Cadillac
AJ: Sergio Pérez & Colton Herta
Finally, Cadillac made no secret of their keenness to get Colton Herta into their team, placing him an F2 this year, moving from IndyCar to get him used to racing on the Formula 1 circuits and to get his all important super license.
The only question that remained was which one of Sergio Pérez or Valtteri Bottas would make way for the Californian driver. Both drivers carry experience in terms of race wins, podiums, points and pole positions, but it’ll come down to one far more obvious and simple factor - money.
As marketable as Bottas is, Pérez’s wealthy and long-standing benefactors will be far more important than the ones Bottas can bring to Cadillac.
TS: Sergio Perez & Valtteri Bottas
One more season of this experienced pairing before putting Herta in. Herta still needs to find his feet in Formula 2 and a second season might do him some good, while Cadillac continues to build with two experienced pairs of hands on its books.
AJ:
IN: Palou, Fornaroli, Dunne, Tsolov, Tsunoda, Camara, Herta
OUT: Hamilton, Verstappen, Alonso, Albon, Colapinto, Ocon, Bottas
CHANGE TEAMS: Bortoleto, Bearman, Russell, Lawson.
TS:
IN: Crawford, Dunne, Tsolov, Camara
OUT: Hamilton, Verstappen, Alonso, Colapinto
CHANGE TEAM: Bearman, Lawson
📸Image credits: Formula Motorsport Limited, Cadillac F1 Team.
Comments