3 F1 drivers who could lose their seats come the end of the season
The 2023 F1 season is currently in its summer break and this is often the time for teams and drivers to unwind. With the calendar becoming more packed due to the number of races increasing almost every year, this is likely to be a welcome break for them all.
Having said that, there are a few drivers that might not be breathing easy at the moment. Their contracts will be up by the end of the season and the performances that they have put together in the first half have not inspired enough confidence with respect to getting a renewal.
There are a few drivers on the F1 grid right now that could lose their seats next season. Who are these drivers? Let's take a look.
#1 Logan Sargeant | Williams
Logan Sargeant was signed by Williams after an impressive first rookie season in F2. The driver has a credible junior career in which he was a teammate to Oscar Piastri on multiple occasions. Sargeant would have ideally beaten Piastri to the title in F3 if not for an accident in the very last race of the championship.
When he was signed by Williams to replace Nicholas Latifi, it was a welcome move as many felt he would be an upgrade to the Canadian. Early in the season, it Sargeant appeared to be doing just that.
As the season has progressed, however, that particular belief has dwindled as he has been outclassed by Williams teammate Alex Albon. Even that would not have been a major concern had the American shown a level of learning and improvement that fellow rookie Oscar Piastri has shown.
With rumors floating around of Alex Palou being courted by Williams, Logan Sargeant might be one of the F1 drivers in danger of losing his seat by the end of the season.
#2 Kevin Magnussen | Haas F1
Kevin Magnussen was the star at Haas last season after returning to the team following a one-year gap. From the very first race, Magnussen showed that he had lost none of his F1 racecraft and scored points. He not only scored the bulk of points for Haas, but also got the team's first-ever pole position.
The 2023 F1 season, however, has not been as kind to him in that respect as he has been completely dominated by Nico Hulkenberg in the same car. The gap between the two drivers in qualifying is the biggest on the entire grid. More often than not, Hulkenberg has placed the car in Q3 while Magnussen has struggled.
The way the latter has been outclassed by his teammate this season does cast doubts over his future with the team.
#3 Guanyu Zhou | Alfa Romeo
Guanyu Zhou has been an interesting case study for fans. He continues to be in Alfa Romeo's good books, even though not much he has done has caught the eye in the last 18 months.
There are many that have attributed a more competitive second season alongside Valtteri Bottas as a sign of improvement from Zhou. While there could be an element of that, it can't be denied that Bottas has seen his performances drop off a cliff this season.
To add to this, the Sauber-backed junior Theo Pourchaire is currently leading the championship in Formula 2 and is the favorite to win the title. When you take this into consideration, we're looking at a possible scenario where Zhou gets the boot from F1 and Pourchaire takes his spot.