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Another crazy Silly Season to follow? These contracts expire in 2025
The 'Silly Season' reached new heights over the 2024 season. While the phrase usually referred to the transfer announcement over the summer, last year, it already began after it was announced that Lewis Hamilton will join Ferrari. Could that be repeated soon.
The 2025 grid looks quite different to what fans saw back in 2024. Due to transfers and many expiring contracts, only McLaren and Aston Martin are set to continue with the same duo.
Already in 2025, many seat that could interest many drivers are set to expire. The will be two open seats at Mercedes with George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli's contract expering at the end of the season, while Liam Lawson also has a single-year deal with Red Bull Racing.
Similarly to Mercedes, the two drivers' of Racing Bulls (Yuki Tsunoda and rookie Isack Hadjar) will have their contracts expire at the end of this season. Moreover, Jack Doohan also has a one-year contract signed at the moment at Alpine.
More F1 contracts set expire in 2026 - And what happens with "at least"?
Things could look a lot more crazier in 2026, with many more contracts expiring. Moreover, many drivers had the words "at least" in their contract announcements, so there are more unknowns for the public eye.
These drivers have their contracts expire at the end of the 2026 season at top teams: Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari can extend the deal by another season) and Oscar Piastri (McLaren). Moreover, Fernando Alonso's contract will also run out at Aston Martin, by when the Spaniard will be 45 years old. The same goes for Haas youngster Oliver Bearman, while in principle for Esteban Ocon as well, unless Haas will trigger an extension.
Then, several drivers like future Audi duo Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg, the Williams duo of Alexander Albon, Carlos Sainz, and Pierre Gasly, are all signed until "at least" the 2026 season.
Lando Norris, Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen all have longer deals signed. For the first two, the actual years are unknown, while the Dutchman has a deal until 2028.
Still, no matter the contract signed, more changes could always happen in the competition. For example, in 2024, Sergio Perez signed a new contract, just to be released and replaced by Lawson before the 2025 season could begin.
This article was written in collaboration with Sandy van Wijngaarden
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