Which drivers are in danger of losing their seat for 2026?

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4 hours ago

Austrian Grand PrixVenue: Red Bull Ring, Spielberg Dates: 27-29 June Race start: 14:00 BST on SundayCoverage: Live commentary of practice and qualifying on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra with race on BBC Radio 5 Live; live text updates on BBC Sport website and app
After George Russell's win in Canada, Formula 1 heads back to Europe for this weekend's Austrian Grand Prix.Oscar Piastri has a 22-point lead in the drivers' championship over McLaren team-mate Lando Norris after their collision in Montreal eliminated the Briton.BBC Sport F1 correspondent Andrew Benson answers your latest questions before the race in Spielberg.
With the saga within the FIA, and president Mohammed Ben Sulayem in particular, still drawing headlines for all the wrong reasons, how are the teams and drivers reacting to all of this? - GarethThere is widespread dismay and discomfort within Formula 1 teams and drivers about the way the FIA is being run. But they are not keen to make that too obvious publicly.From time to time, the drivers - particularly George Russell, in his role as a director of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association - make their displeasure known over a particular topic, for example the ban on swearing.But the team bosses, while usually willing to discuss their unease privately, very rarely say anything publicly. That's because they just don't want to take any risks when the FIA is in a position to make their lives difficult, should it choose to do so, if they voice concern or opposition.One exception was Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu before the season, when he said: "Don't write it [in a] headline 'Ayao says FIA is in a mess', but that's what everybody thinks. That's what everybody experiences. I don't know what to say. It's not great, is it? Seriously." But you could see the issue immediately when he was asked a follow-up question, and he replied: "I don't want to get into that political battle."
Why are the Italian media so hard on Ferrari? Surely this puts more pressure on the team. - MartinFerrari have a different status within Italy from that of other teams in their home countries.They are regarded as a national team and as such the population feels invested in them and their performance. So people feel they have a right to express their opinion about how they're doing, because they care.It is part of what makes Ferrari special, and what makes it a more intense, high-pressured environment than any other team.It comes with the territory and anyone who thinks it doesn't is deluding themselves. It's also worth pointing out that it is not the media's job to support an F1 team. It is to report on it and scrutinise it, objectively and with rigour.This question presumably arises from the remarks Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur made in Canada following reports in two leading newspapers in Italy on the eve of the race weekend that his position was in question.Vasseur was not happy at all, and he said: "I don't know the target. I don't understand the target... in this case, I don't see the point. Perhaps it's for them the only way to exist. This is probably more the reason. But it's really hurting the team."It's not like this that we'll be able to win a championship. At least not with this kind of journalist around us."It's understandable that Vasseur would be upset. Although he said his main concern was not himself, because he knew the scrutiny that came with the job, but the other staff members whose names periodically appear in the paper, either directly or indirectly, by individuals from other teams being linked with Ferrari.The thing is, these reports appeared in probably the two most respected Italian newspapers covering sport - Gazzetta dello Sport and Corriere della Sera. And on the same day.I'm told they were not coordinated, and that would be highly unlikely anyway, given they are rival publications.The facts of Ferrari's current situation are that they entered the year, having come close to winning the constructors' championship last season, believing and saying they could compete for the title. And they have fallen a long way short of that so far.Ultimately, that is Vasseur's responsibility.
Which of the current F1 drivers are looking in danger of losing their seat next year? - JohnThe obvious place to start is the two Red Bull teams. Yuki Tsunoda looks certain to be dropped by Red Bull unless he can find a major uplift in performance. The expectation is that Isack Hadjar will replace him alongside Max Verstappen, assuming the Dutchman stays where he is, following the Frenchman's impressive start to his career at Racing Bulls.Briton Arvid Lindblad, who is racing in Formula 2 for the first time this year and is third in the championship, has a good chance of being promoted to Racing Bulls. Whether Liam Lawson keeps his seat there remains an open question.The drivers at McLaren, Ferrari, Williams, Aston Martin, Haas and Sauber/Audi are all tied in for next year.That leaves Mercedes and Alpine.The likelihood is that George Russell and Kimi Antonelli will retain their seats at Mercedes. Although if Verstappen was to become available, that could obviously lead to a change there.At Alpine, Pierre Gasly is under contract but the second seat is wide open. It's anyone's guess who'll get that with all the uncertainty hanging over the team following the departure of Renault chairman Luca de Meo,, external who was the driving force behind its rebranding, and behind the appointment of Flavio Briatore as executive adviser and de facto team boss.
Mercedes showed a significant upturn in performance at the Canadian Grand Prix, with George Russell securing the win. Do you believe this is a circuit-specific anomaly, or does it signal a genuine shift in their competitive standing, particularly with their recent aerodynamic upgrades? - EdeleAll Mercedes' rivals expected the team to be competitive in Canada - because they were last year, and because the circuit characteristics suit their car.Mercedes' issue has been with tyre overheating. Long corners, abrasive track surfaces and hot temperatures have tended to take their tyres over a threshold. Canada had only one of those.As team principal Toto Wolff put it after the race: "I thought it's when I'm wearing a pullover, there's some kind of correlation with our performances because that means it's cold. And today, 50C track temperature, and we've been dominant."We've had some things changing on the car, we have a new rear suspension. I'm really happy how the team has managed that, the trackside team and also back in the factory, how these things have been coming on to the car. But I guess you need to look at the track layout."Montreal was always good to us, it lacks the typical high-speed corners where we suffer more in the heat. That's one, and number two is quite a smooth asphalt here, which is less abrasive and therefore less damaging to our car that suffers from rear tyre degradation and overheating."The new rear suspension is aimed at increasing anti-lift - ie, keeping the aerodynamic platform more stable, to keep rear downforce more consistent, and rear grip higher.Extreme amounts of rear anti-lift and front anti-dive are one of the key success elements of this year's McLaren. So Mercedes is aiming for the same effect.But they won't know whether it's worked until they find out whether they can keep their Canada level of competitiveness once they get on to circuits that have more tended to expose their weaknesses. The first chance to find out is in Austria this weekend.
What is your understanding about the current progress of having a grand prix in Africa? - NickF1 is still keen to have a grand prix in Africa, to make it a truly global world championship. But finding the right location is proving problematic.Kyalami in South Africa last week announced that it had "confirmation that the FIA has accepted final design proposals to upgrade the circuit to Grade One status - the highest international standard required to host Formula 1".It added: "Selected works will be actioned pending the successful outcome of South Africa's place on the Formula 1 calendar and Kyalami being selected as the preferred hosting venue."In other words, it will do the required work only if it wins a contract to host F1. And it is a long way from that.There is a rival bid in South Africa, for a street race in Cape Town. Neither is believed to have the funding required.Rwanda popped up as a potential host nation last year - and its president Paul Kagame hosted the FIA prizegiving in December in the capital Kigali. But although a new F1-standard track is being built by the new airport there, the chances of the race happening have receded.There is another bid in Morocco, for a track in Tangier. But that as yet has no funding, and does not have the backing of the country's king, without which finances are unlikely to be found.