There is no such thing as a year without pressure in Formula 1. No matter whether you’re one year into a three-year contract or your father part-owns the team, there is always a high level of expectation on every driver.
However, it’s also true that some drivers will be under particularly bright spotlights for 2024. For the following drivers, this could be a pivotal season in their careers.Some know their contracts are up for renewal and they need to up their game to keep their seat at the table. Others need to dig deep and show they still deserve a place among the front runners.
Last year’s remarkable situation where every driver kept their place on the grid for the following season is surely not about to be repeated in 2025. And these drivers have the most cause for concern about their future prospects.
Logan Sargeant
For a driver who was so confident about his single-lap performance before starting his rookie season, he likely never anticipated being whitewashed by Albon in the qualifying battle. He reached Q2 only twice in the year, while Albon did so on seven occasions, and was knocked out in Q1 more time than any other driver.
But the biggest area Sargeant must improve on is in cleaning up the all-too-frequent driving errors that only appeared to increase in the second half of the year. Team principal James Vowles has given him a major vote of confidence by allowing him a second season, but Sargeant needs to show a marked improvement in order to have any hope of a third.
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Kevin Magnussen
Although a lot of Magnussen’s troubles last season could be blamed on having a car that had a fundamental problem with tyre wear that the team failed to solve over the course of the year, his inability to draw the same speed out of the car as his team mate did not reflect well on him. He managed to earn an extension through to 2024, but this is shaping up to be another pivotal season in his career.
Ferrari academy driver Oliver Bearman impressed many in his rookie season in Formula 2 at such a young age and put in impressive Friday practice performances for Haas at the end of the year. He is emerging as an obvious candidate for a future race seat at the team. Magnussen needs to ensure that if happens, he is not the one who is obliged to make way.
Zhou Guanyu
Although he was rarely outstanding last season, Zhou did show some improvement over his rookie campaign, matching Bottas more regularly. But that does not mean he can afford a similar season of results for 2024. More improvement – as in, more outright speed – will be necessary. Zhou may have kept reigning Formula 2 champion Theo Pourchaire out of his seat this long, but Sauber will keep their top junior driver race-ready this year in Super Formula, from where Liam Lawson made a smooth transition into F1 last season.
Zhou will also face unique pressure this season when he becomes the first Chinese driver to compete in his home grand prix at Shanghai. Although Ma Qing Hua took part in a Friday practice session back in 2013, no local driver has yet raced in the event. Although he’s familiar with the Shanghai International Circuit as a fan, having attended the race as a child, Zhou will only have one hour of practice to familiarise himself with the track before qualifying at the first sprint event of the season.
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Yuki Tsunoda
In 2023 it seemed the 23-year-old had ironed out some of the mistakes which marred his earlier years. He also comfortably had the measure of De Vries over their ten rounds together, making his older team mate – and Formula E world champion – look like a rookie fresh out of Formula 2 during their time together. But when Ricciardo arrived at Hungary, Tsunoda found himself immediately eclipsed by a driver entirely new to the car.
Although Tsunoda managed to score some important points for his team in the later part of the season, this year is likely going to be Tsunoda’s final opportunity to convince Red Bull that he should be a contender for the seat alongside Max Verstappen. And in order to achieve that, he’s going to have to come out the clear winner in the battle between him and Ricciardo.
Daniel Ricciardo
After choosing to leave Red Bull six years ago in search of a new opportunity to fight for a world championship title elsewhere, Ricciardo has ended up back where he started, and in the junior team rather than the senior squad. But when he was given the chance to return to the field last year, he showed he was ready to race and put together some strong drives which hinted at his potential to return to his race-winning ways.
This is a critical season for Ricciardo because it could end up being the year that results in his return to the front of the field. But depending on how Sergio Perez performs, there is even an outside chance he could make his second unexpected return to a former team in the space of a single season.
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Sergio Perez
Perez has contributed to his team’s back-to-back constructors’ titles over the last two seasons. However Verstappen has been so dominant that Perez’s contribution has been superfluous at times, and he fell so far short last year that a repeat performance could make him a liability. If Red Bull face a tougher fight this year they will need Perez to perform at his best every time he steps into the car – otherwise the likes of Mercedes, Ferrari and even McLaren may be able to do real damage to them in the championship.
In the final year of his current contract with his team and Ricciardo waiting in the wings, eager to return, Perez knows this is the most important season he will have as a Red Bull driver. One where there can be no excuses for avoidable errors. Not only because this could well be his last opportunity to ever fight for a world championship title if he underperforms, but it could even be his last season in Formula 1 as a result.
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Formula 1
- Pictures: Red Bull’s aggressive new sidepod design revealed in detail at test
- Pictures: New views of Mercedes W15 running in Bahrain test
- Pictures: 2024 F1 pre-season testing day one: Bahrain
- Pictures: Haas VF-24 officially presented as testing begins in Bahrain
- Driver line-up confirmed for sole pre-season F1 test
Luke S (@joeypropane)
9th January 2024, 12:49
I’d add Russell, Leclerc and Stroll to this list.
George needs to show people he is “the future after Lewis” for Mercedes, he was way too far off last season.
Charles had a great finish, but he’s too experienced now to keep getting away with silly errors and can challange the pit wall when it’s obvious they are making a wrong call.
Stroll has the same brief as Perez – nobody is expecting him to beat Alonso, but he has to be at least close.
Asd
9th January 2024, 14:05
I agree, especially about Russell. And if Mercedes have a winning car, some pressure might come his way.
And I would rephrase your last sentence into this:
Stroll has the same brief as Perez – nobody is expecting him to beat Alonso, but he has to at least beat himself.
Dane
9th January 2024, 14:14
Stroll is never going to be fired by Daddy, so how much pressure is there really?
I keep hearing about Leclerc’s errors but besides Miami qualifying he didn’t have any major errors. Norris was worse than him.
Russell was unspectacular but who are they realistically going to replace him with that’s better?
Asd
9th January 2024, 15:09
“Stroll is never going to be fired by Daddy, so how much pressure is there really?”
– Let’s not be that cynical. Lance Stroll is just a human. Relentless negative criticism isn’t much fun for anybody, humiliation is even less. Those things can break a man. People don’t only get fired, they also quit their jobs.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
10th January 2024, 6:37
After reading that I can imagine alonso driving blindfolded and with 1 hand starting from the back with an engine penalty, overtaking and eventually lapping stroll, that might just do it!
MichaelN
9th January 2024, 15:31
Agreed, Russell and Leclerc need to step it up. They’re supposed to lead their teams in the next few years as they try to stop Verstappen from collecting an even longer list of titles. They’re not supposed to trail the ‘old’ Hamilton and struggle mightily to outscore Sainz. I don’t doubt either could put together a solid season in the best car, but Ferrari and Mercedes want the next Schumacher or Hamilton, not the next Räikkönen or Button.
That said, there’s not a whole lot of pressure on them from the back of the grid, filled with ‘experienced’ drivers past their best by date, or guys with sufficient money, family or nationality bonuses to keep their spot. The only real new talents are at McLaren, and they’d be really silly to let either of them go.
montreal95 (@montreal95)
9th January 2024, 20:49
@joeypropane Disagree. These 3 do not belong in this list because this is a list of drivers with the most to prove. Otherwise we might as well put every driver apart from MV in the list which would make it meaningless.
Leclerc has beaten every single team mate in F1 including Vettel and Sainz like a drum in qualifying every single season. He makes 1or 2 mistakes per year and every clueless casual fan says he’s choking despite others like Norris making more mistakes than him. But he’s pushing that car hard and getting more out of it than Sainz. If you take outside circumstances out of the equation like Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Brazil etc. the gap between them would be big in the points also, not just in qualy.
Russell is against an all-time great in a woeful car. He was better than LH in 2022 and worse than LH in 2023 but it’s been close both years. Yes of course he made some bad mistakes so he has something to prove but not at the level of the 6 drivers mentioned. It’s the Mercedes team that has the most to prove in 2024 in fact, not any of their drivers.
I would want to agree with you about Stroll but it’s frankly pointless. If this was about performance he would have been kicked out of F1 a long time ago. The fact he wasn’t means there’s zero pressure and he’ll stay in daddy’s team for as long as he likes unfortunately.
Christopher Rehn (@chrischrill)
12th January 2024, 10:17
Russell was quite severely outpaced by Hamilton in 2023. Russell was 8th and Hamilton 3rd, and the points gap is 59 points. Keep in mind this includes the points Hamilton lost in Texas from P2 (which Russell benefited from, since Leclerc too was disqualified). In pure pace, Russell was quite good in qualifying but didn’t really have the race pace in 2023 and he needs to be closer.
I’m excluding Singapore here, that happens and I don’t hold it against Russell.
José Lopes da Silva
9th January 2024, 21:29
Stroll is the driver with less to prove of all the 20.
Max Verstappen has to prove that he is able to achieve his 4th title. Stroll doesn’t have to prove anything.
Stroll is heading into his 8th full season. We could well get into his 16th season and demanding that “this is it, he has something to prove”.
Brell-9W
9th January 2024, 13:12
This list is very accurate. I think Sargeant is the most under pressure driver, simply because he struggled so much last season. The thing saving him is I don’t think the next Williams junior in line (either Colapinto or O’Sullivan) is ready yet. Would Williams agree to take Kimi Antonelli on a one year deal as seat warming for Mercedes, if his F2 results in 2024 are good enough? Maybe not.
There also seems to be a buzz about Oliver Bearman, so that surely puts pressure on Kevin Magnussen, lest Nico Hulkenberg seemingly gets a better offer. I want to add that Hulkenberg and Magnussen were very similar on race pace, it was really only qualifying that where there was a noticeable difference.
The three Red Bull backed drivers NOT named Max are also facing pressure; it’s Red Bull after all and they are the one team (these days) that doesn’t mind making mid-season driver changes. There are no second chances left for Daniel Ricciardo, and Sergio Perez is running out of them as well, and with Liam Lawson likely getting a seat on the 2025 grid, even Yuki Tsunoda must bring his best.
I think Guanyu Zhou is staying put at Sauber/Audi for a while yet.
F1statsfan (@f1statsfan)
9th January 2024, 13:13
I would add Hamilton the list – showing that he can win again after 2 winless years – show that even if he doesn’t have the outright fastest car of the field he can win.
montreal95 (@montreal95)
9th January 2024, 20:31
@f1statsfan Disagree. Hamilton has nothing to prove.He won many times in cars that weren’t the fastest prior to 2014. He won multiple times in cars that weren’t fastest on the day even in the domination period like in 2017 and 2018 for example. But there are limits to what a driver, even an all time great can do when the car is miles off the pace. Just ask Alonso who hasn’t won since 2013. Mercedes won 1 race in the last 2 seasons. And yes that wasn’t Hamilton but that only proves how far off the team is. So the pressure is on Mercedes not LH.
Ferdinand
10th January 2024, 8:49
I agree and it is surprising he is not listed. He of all has something to prove to counter his critics that he can only win when the total package has an advantage over the field. Moreover he never raced for a back marker team since his entrance in the sport. Of all people, I look most forward to him proving himself.
A M (@amam)
10th January 2024, 18:44
“I agree and it is surprising he is not listed. He of all has something to prove to counter his critics that he can only win when the total package has an advantage over the field”
Were you in a coma 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 when he won races against the much faster, dominant Brawn/RB? Even post 2014, he won a title in a car that wasn’t the outright fastest in 2018. Ferrari were just as quick.
Ferdinand
11th January 2024, 8:19
I do not agree. He has had the nr 1 car for 95% of his career and for 5% the runner up. Until 2022, when the winning stopped.
A M (@amam)
14th January 2024, 11:39
So are you saying Brawn/RB wasn’t the best car 2009-2013?
Mayrton
10th January 2024, 8:57
Admittedly Lewis was the first that popped up in my mind when reading the headline of this article.
Emma
10th January 2024, 16:48
But of course!
Mayrton
11th January 2024, 8:14
Well, it does makes sense. I mean, first he won everything (and if he didn’t his team mate would) and now he has a very long stint without a win. Questions are being raised. He for sure has something to prove.
A M (@amam)
14th January 2024, 11:43
No he doesn’t. Unless you too were in a coma when he was winning races against the dominant Brawn/RB 2009-2013
Leroy (@g-funk)
9th January 2024, 13:26
Lance’s dad may own the team, but I think he is definitely on this list. If he continues to lag behind Fernando as much as he did last year, the cries from the public about his worthiness for the seat will only grow louder until the sponsors and other shareholders will force Papa Stroll to react. And maybe Lance will even be proactive and decide that open wheel racing isn’t for him. He clearly started to show the strain of the public’s increased scrutiny of him last year. Maybe he will reach his breaking point this year.
tielemst
9th January 2024, 13:28
Although I agree with the arguments above, I think arguments can be made for every driver this way.
Verstappen will need to perform instantly to put the rumours to bed that during the year the car will be developed towards him.
Hamilton, Alonso, Bottas have to prove that they can still perform and be better than their team mates or age questions will be raised.
The strong finish of McLaren and the hype (?hope?) surrounding the team now puts pressure on the drivers to perform, else that fantastic car might new drivers. Piastri did great in his first year but will have to prove he can be a match for Norris on race day, while Norris himself needs to get wins under his belt to prove he can make the final step to a WDC contender.
Stroll maybe doesn’t have to prove anything to keep his seat but he surely will have to prove he is capable of driving a race car on at least a mediocre level.
Gasly and Ocon were very close last year, and the way things go in F1 they will have to prove they deserve the seat more than the other guy
Leclerc has been mentioned above by @joeypropane, but the same goea for Sainz really. He finished strong and will be remembered for winning the race Red Bull lost, but with all that he still finished behind Leclerc. The fight for team no. 1 will be equally tough as it will be at Alpine.
Hulkenberg and Albon can be pleased with their performances, but will be eager to prove they belogn in a better team. They need a few standout performances for that. For Hulkenberg it’s all about leaving the dog house called Haas. For Albon getting his career going again at Williams was great, but he ia of an age he will still want to fight for wins (Hulk too, but I’m afraid it’s just not to be for him).
Asd
9th January 2024, 14:12
“Hamilton, Alonso, Bottas have to prove that they can still perform and be better than their team mates or age questions will be raised.”
That’s a redundant take. When talking about somebody needing to prove sth, we mean sth that hasn’t been proven by them yet. But here, they all have already proven being still able to perform. Obviously they are aging, but so is everyone else.
You might demand for them to prove they “still got it” after they show they might not. But this hasn’t been the case for any of them yet.
José Lopes da Silva
9th January 2024, 21:32
“Verstappen will need to perform instantly to put the rumours to bed”
Verstappen is the driver in the whole of F1 history that cared less about the rumours.
History says that Schumacher underperformed in Hungary 93 after rumours that Senna could join him at Benetton for 1994. Verstappen is way, way above all that.
He won’t put the rumours to bed, he will invite them to a beer
Ferdinand
10th January 2024, 8:53
Yes, I agree with looking at it this way. They all have their own battle.
Jere (@jerejj)
9th January 2024, 14:44
I’d also add Bottas to this category, perhaps even more so than Zhou, & somewhat ironically, 2025 will probably be Pourchaire’s last chance in Team Hinwill.
Alternatively, I wouldn’t really have Magnussen among these drivers since Haas has a clear preference for experienced drivers, meaning Bearman is unlikely to get a chance anytime soon.
A M (@amam)
10th January 2024, 18:46
Why? He beat Zhou by good margins. Why would an ageing Bottas need to prove anything?
Todfod (@todfod)
9th January 2024, 14:53
How can Stroll not be on this list. I think he needs to prove to fans that he isn’t the least deserving driver to have a seat in F1.
This is basically a strugglers list.
Zann (@zann)
9th January 2024, 20:41
yes I mean Fernando is 42. Everyone thinks he’s brilliant, which he is, but still he can’t be as good as he was when he was Lance’s age, but he’s completely humiliated Lance. So what’s in it for Lawrence? His son isn’t going to turn into an F1 driver star is he? Not ever. Backmarker. Status: zero. And for his team to achieve his ambitions he needs top drivers
So who knows about these billionaires, how they might think, but I wouldn’t be amazed if Lance gets moved into a director role or something like that
Asd
9th January 2024, 15:08
“Stroll is never going to be fired by Daddy, so how much pressure is there really?”
– Let’s not be that cynical. Lance Stroll is just a human. Relentless negative criticism isn’t much fun for anybody, humiliation is even less. Those things can break a man.
Robert Williams
9th January 2024, 15:39
I would have had Gasly and Ocon just under Logan Sargeant. I know the Renault – er, Alpine – is not a good race car, but as is said above, a good driver finds the opportunities to find results that flatter that car. Neither did that.
RandomMallard
9th January 2024, 17:37
I mean, they both scored podiums last season? And Ocon took 4th in Vegas while Gasly picked up a couple of top 6s in the second half of the season. Given how at any one point 4, if not 5 at some points, cars were generally faster than them, I would personally say that flatters the car quite nicely.
Robert L Williams
10th January 2024, 19:07
Even a blind hog can find an acorn occasionally. Despite those two events, I didn’t see either having a race that could be termed brilliant. I don’t they got the most out of their cars.
BTW, Gasly’s one of my favorite drivers, so it’s not like I’m slagging a driver I don’t like. I just felt both coud have done bette
sumedh
9th January 2024, 17:26
I think Checo will simply retire at the end of the year.
He was nearly gone at the end of 2020. An absolutely incredible end of the season ensured he continued in F1, and that too with Red Bull. But the fairy-tale has to end somewhere. I think his 2024 could be similar to 2022. And he would retire.
Will always remember him for his podiums through the Merc dominant years, that 2020 season end, and the Minister of Defence antics for Max in 2021
montreal95 (@montreal95)
9th January 2024, 20:59
I think this list is spot on. Judging by the comments above this list would be 18 out of 20 drivers or something like that which would make it meaningless. Most drivers have something to prove but these 6 are those who literally have their jobs on the line and it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that most of them will have their F1 careers over in less than 12 months. Sargeant, Magnussen, Zhou, Perez and whoever loses between Tsunoda and Ricciardo could all simultaneously be thrown out of the sport. No other drivers is in the same category.
Tristan
9th January 2024, 21:27
As the only team with both drivers in this list. Yuki v Dan is going to be a great battle to follow. Both have everything to gain, and everything to lose.
MichaelN
10th January 2024, 11:12
What do either of them realistically have to win, though?
Assuming that if Pérez has another season like 2023, it’s likely he won’t be back in 2025 – so that opens up a spot at the first two Red Bull cars. But is Red Bull really going to put the Honda-appointee who never looked anything special compared to Gasly in their main cars? Unlikely. And Ricciardo is going to be almost 36 in 2025, with his best years almost a decade behind him. Even if he ‘beats’ Tsunoda, that’s hardly the kind of win to rejuvenate a career.
We’ve already seen that no other team was interested in hiring Ricciardo for 2023, and Tsunoda is very unlikely to go anywhere else either. Honda might not have any other superlicensed Japanese drivers in their orbit (Toyota has a few more but they have a WEC program to put them to use in), but Aston Martin is unlikely to accept having Tsunoda forced upon them as they only have two cars to Red Bull’s four.
Jungle
10th January 2024, 11:38
There is speed with Yuki but combined with his race craft its too erratic/unreliable. Similar to Grosjean. Lawson is too green yet for the top drive. So that leaves Riccardo to replace Perez but only to keep the seat warm for Lawson for a season or two.
Jungle
10th January 2024, 11:45
Should be happening already actually I’d of moved Perez on!
SteveP
9th January 2024, 21:09
Honestly?
I think it’s more likely that he wanders off to do something other than F1.
David BR (@david-br)
9th January 2024, 23:48
I don’t think Perez has anything he can prove. We’ve seen his limitations and Red Bull are happy with them. He’s not going to be driving any different. The other drivers mentioned are all on the cusp of being replaced, basically, and it’s really more a question of whether their teams think it’s worth an upgrade.
Maybe the team pairing with something to ‘prove’ each other are Piastri and Norris. That’s a battle that does interest me in 2024 and really both of them will be trying to prove that they should be the lead driver, number one, McLaren’s future etc. And it’s really not clear who will emerge in that position over the coming season.
Tristan
10th January 2024, 1:57
That’s a good point, I think a big part of that question is whether McLaren can prove to Norris whether he should stay with them for 2026 and beyond, depending on what other offers he gets (he’s Max’s captain’s pick after all.)
I don’t think he actually has much to prove there and McLaren would be crazy not to keep him as their star (if Piastri gets stroppy about it, he should be told to look elsewhere.) The question is whether they can manage to keep him…
David BR (@david-br)
10th January 2024, 14:03
Keeping both may be tricky, I don’t see Piastri backing down… You’re right that the logical choice for the team is Norris, but Piastri seems the same level if not a bit faster. Not sure how real all the gossip last season about Red Bull being interested in signing Norris is, but if there’s any substance to it, then I guess McLaren have a great backup option.
MichaelN
10th January 2024, 11:19
Ironically, I think Pérez is the only one who can prove himself by slowing down. Pérez looked like he was overreaching in 2023, and stumbling as a result.
So if he adjusts his goals, calmly works through the program, and just finishes on the podium – even if it’s some ways behind Verstappen – he can prove himself worthy of a 2025 seat.
David BR (@david-br)
10th January 2024, 13:55
That’s true, he was trying to emulate Max’s driving style at some points and it didn’t work out well. The main concern for Red Bull is probably the persistent failure to get into Q3 and finish at least P5 or P6 on the grid. That gives them strategy choices for the race to assist Max if he needs it. It’s almost the easiest driving job on the grid in terms of the machinery at anyone’s disposal – though the pressure of driving at the front says otherwise of course.
RR
10th January 2024, 9:08
I would say Perez over achieved in 23, if anything. It is unlikely he will have such a stellar start to the coming year.
RB know exactly what they’ve got. For their own reasons, they are happy to keep him.
MurasamaRA300 (@murasamara300)
10th January 2024, 11:53
I agree. He finished P2 in the end and he is a known entity.
Despite the struggles in the second half of 2023, I still can’t find anyone who would do a better job.
David BR (@david-br)
10th January 2024, 14:05
@murasamara300 I’m sure 5 or 6 drivers would do a lot more in that car and compete on even-ish terms with Max. But it depends what job Red Bull actually want done.
David BR (@david-br)
10th January 2024, 14:08
(In no particular order: Hamilton, Norris, Piastri, Russell, Leclerc, probably Alonso; Sainz and Ricciardo too if they could cope with the pressure).
A M (@amam)
10th January 2024, 18:49
“I still can’t find anyone who would do a better job.”
You are joking aren’t you?? LOL
Considering Lewis, George, Alonso, Lando, Charles etc all overall outqualified Perez in 2023 despite Perez being in a rocketship, i’m pretty sure they would all do better than Checo.
MurasamaRA300 (@murasamara300)
11th January 2024, 10:00
Not joking, only realistic.
Let me clarify – I am referring to 2023 and 2024 and the situation as it is.
The drivers you mention are all very fast.
But at this point in time I do not see any of them:
—————————–
(a) contracted to Red Bull
or
(b) being available for Red Bull.
Available drivers: Ricciardo, Tsunoda & Lawson.
—————————–
I’m doubtful if someone like Norris would want to swap his (in reality) 1st driver status at a seemingly improving McLaren team for a clear 2nd seat at Red Bull. Just because Red Bull had a great car this year does not guarantee they will have the best car next year. (I could see Piastri going for the second Red Bull seat though. That would not surprise me so much.)
Russell, maybe… but he is in a good team already and wasn’t too far off Hamilton. Going up against Verstappen in a team which is clearly built around Verstappen might put Russell in the same position as Perez.
As for Leclerc I get the impression he would very much want to win – I just think he’d want to win with Ferrari. I think he is in the right place and the 2nd car at Red Bull could become a step backwards for him.
As for Alonso and Hamilton – it would sure be great to see Alonso vs Verstappen or Hamilton vs Verstappen in the same car but I just don’t see it happening. It’s just my gut feeling.
Of course, anything can happen in F1 and usually does. I like being wrong. :)
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
10th January 2024, 21:39
Everyone except stroll and a couple of other drivers did a better job than perez this year!
RR
11th January 2024, 15:41
I agree. I’m saying that in spite of this RB want to keep him. He did overachieve: ie, had a good run in the first races of 23, then it went sharply downhill.
Sergey Martyn
12th January 2024, 8:53
Checo looks just like Tom Cruise, so, yes – Mission: Impossible!