F1 Silly Season: The Fight For THAT Red Bull Seat

Rumours in the world of Formula One is nothing new. In fact, in the past, some driver and team rumours have been so ridiculous, appearing at certain points in the season, that it's adopted the infamous name of "Silly Season," and right now, after the events of the Mexican Grand Prix, we seem to be stuck right in the middle of it.

Remember 2013? That was a good one for for sitting on your bums with a tub of popcorn, scrolling through social media for the lastest ridiculous, yet hot, F1 gossip. That season included the rumour that Lewis Hamilton would be leaving McLaren for Mercedes, something that many people believed wouldn't happen, especially as it meant the retirement of Michael Schumacher. Alas, Silly Season delivered, proving that not all rumours are discovered out of boredom and that sometimes, it's the rumours that are more likely to prospire that simply, don't. Take the Sergio Perez to Ferrari rumour. As a Ferrari Academy driver in his early F1 years, this was to be expected. However, it never came to be. It may just be, that what we're about to discuss, isn't just total random jargon.

(Disclaimer - These are just rumours.)

As avid F1 aficionados, who cancel social plans to watch every piece of racing action, we know that despite having a contract for 2024, there are many question marks hanging over Sergio Perez's seat for next season. As a Red Bull driver, who has undoubtedly struggled over the course of 2023, it's getting to a point of "when" will Red Bull replace him, not "if." And, with Daniel Ricciardo back on the Red Bull scene, he is the hot favourite to partner Max Verstappen in either 2024 or 2025, once Perez's contract is up. Regardless, with the pattern that seems to be following the second drivers at Red Bull, does it actually matter as to who gets that seat?

As it seems, Red Bull want nothing but the best and, if the newest rumours are to believed, they have their beady, little eyes on 2x F1 World Champion; Fernando Alonso.

So far, the 2023 season has been a story of ups and downs for the Spaniard; starting off with numerous podiums to barely scoring points in the past few races. It's more than obvious that the effort Aston Martin had put in to the 2023 season has dwindled down to almost nothing, with rivals such as Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren jumping them in the standings. The downfall of Aston Martin is also backed up by reports that owner; Lawrence Stroll, is looking to sell the team. The immediate future of the Aston Martin team is anything but clear. Could Alonso be trying to jump ships before the disaster? Talk in the paddock indicates so, with a seat swap with Red Bull's Sergio Perez on the cards.

But could this really become a reality? Sky Sport's Craig Slater doesn't think so.

"Can we get rid of the elephant in the room, which is Fernando Alonso potentially going to Red Bull next year to partner Max Verstappen? My understanding is that is a non-starter, that is not going to happen,” Slater told the Sky Sports F1 podcast. 

However, as far as anyone is aware, IF Red Bull were to replace Perez for 2024, it would most likely be with Ricciardo, who previously drove for the team from 2014-2018. He is, at the time of writing, the most logical choice. So, in that case, where does that leave Alonso? Further seasons at Aston Martin? A possible retirement from the sport? That rumour is doing the rounds also. All of this courtesy of Spanish journalist; Albert Fabrega.

But, what do I make of it all?

Personally, I've seen plenty of F1 rumours come and go in my many years of being an "F1 nut." This one, though, seems the biggest of them all. Maybe it's because of how much the F1 community has evolved over recent seasons, alongside the drama that seems to plague social media sites. Maybe it's just a type of click bait that has gotten out of control. Regardless, as much as I would LOVE to see Alonso race back in a top team, I can't bring myself to believe that he would go to Red Bull while Verstappen is there. Right now it's Verstappen's team. Him (VER) having a teammate as bold as Alonso is a disaster waiting to happen. Unfortunately though, if recent years are to go by, for any driver who partners Verstappen it could end badly. There is no saying that Ricciardo will be better than Perez.

At the end of the day, Alonso moving to Red Bull is a long shot. An overall retirement from the sport, as much as I'd hate to experience that again, is more likely. It's looking like it's all just another chapter in the 2023 Silly Season.

Race Report: Mexican Grand Prix 2023

Four races to go and the Formula One circus touches down in Mexico City for the Mexican Grand Prix. With no Sprint race this weekend, drivers were back to their usual three practice sessions before qualifying and the race. And, although Free Practice Three was nothing more than a nightmare for Ferrari, the team from Maranello took a shock front row lockout during qualifying on the Saturday with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz starting the race in first and second, respectively. Red Bull and Max Verstappen completed the top three. However, all eyes were to be focused on home-hero, Sergio Perez. But, after showing promise earlier on in the weekend, it was a lonely fifth where he'd be starting.

Race day, and with a sell-out crowd, all twenty drivers are ready to put on a show. As nineteen of them slot into their grid boxes after the formation lap, Lance Stroll trundles in his Aston Martin down to the exit of the pitlane where he'll be starting. With everyone in position, the lights go green in Mexico.

It's a tough get away for the Ferrari duo who find themselves being engulfed by the faster starting Red Bulls. Verstappen takes the inside of Leclerc going into turn one, whereas Perez attempts a move around the outside. Disaster. As the trio attempt turn one together, Perez goes slightly airbourne after making contact with Leclerc. Despite obvious front wing damage, Leclerc carries on in second. Perez, in desperate need of a good weekend, falls to the back of the field, eventually returning to the pits where he retires. At the end of lap one, it's normal precedings with Verstappen out front. Leclerc, with his damaged wing, sits in second, his teammate behind in third.

With debris on the track at turn one, the Virtual Safety Car is deployed. But, as quick as it came out, it goes back in. Lando Norris, who started towards the back of the grid, is out on soft tyres, trying to make up lost ground. He gets past the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso for fifteenth with the help of DRS. Towards the front of the field, Lewis Hamilton is starting to put pressure on Daniel Ricciardo, who had a brilliant qualifying session the day before. He has a look into turn one but decides against making the move before telling his race engineer: "the car is running hot." Elsewhere, Leclerc is noted for driving in an unsafe condition, thanks to the damage on his front wing.

There is another brief yellow flag with Yuki Tsunoda taking a trip across the grass as he attempts an overtake on Logan Sargeant. He subsequently falls behind Alonso before diving into the pits for new rubber. Back with the Hamilton/Ricciardo battle and the former finally makes his move on lap eleven. Norris, who was the only driver to start on softs, comes in for his first stop. He returns to the track in eighteenth, wearing the medium boots.

Verstappen, still leading, has put nearly four seconds between himself and Leclerc, who is managing to cling on for second. Red Bull tell Verstappen to "watch the kerb at turn three." Both Ferrari's are assured that they are still on Plan A. Down at Aston Martin, Alonso let's his teammate through for fifteenth. He's also been advised to lift and coast in order to cool the car. Tsunoda sets the fastest lap of the race. A 1:22.501.

There is movement for the final point paying positions as Alexander Albon passes Zhou Guanyu. Next up for the Williams is the Alpine of Pierre Gasly. But it's Verstappen that's struggling on his current tyres. He pits at the end of lap nineteen, throwing on the hards. Norris, who has already stopped, is flying through the field. He passes Ocon and Alonso to make it back up into fifteenth.

The Mercedes pit crew is out in the pitlane but both Hamilton and George Russell stay out. A potential dummy to force the Ferrari's in? One team, however, do bring their drivers in. Both Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen pit for Haas with a double stack. On lap twenty five, Hamilton finally comes in. At Ferrari, instead of reacting to Hamilton's stop, they decide to stay out, telling Sainz: "Our best bet is to extend and go optimal one-stop." Their driver agrees. Mclaren's Oscar Piastri also pits, with Russell following him in a lap later. Russell comes out behind Albon and is disgruntled by this. His team tell him they needed to cover Norris. Out front, both Ferraris come in.

Zhou, who is running in the midfield, reports that he can smell burning in the car. Alfa Romeo look into what the issue could be. Not long after, the yellow flag is back out. Magnussen has had a heavy crash going into turn nine which results in the Safety Car being deployed. Driver is out of the car and ok. Many drivers take the opportunity to pit for new rubber, including race leader; Verstappen. Flames start to appear from the rear of the Haas as marshals take their time to attend the incident. Eventually they get there. The red flag is thrown and drivers make their way back to the pits.

The race will resume with a standing start, however, Leclerc is concerned. "A standing start with a hard tyre is going to be a huge mess," with most drivers restarting on cold, hard tyres. Hamilton is the only front runner restarting on the softer, medium compound.

The race resumes and the run up to the first turn is clean. Verstappen holds his lead in front of Leclerc and Hamilton. With the latter two fighting it out for position, Verstappen manages to create a 1.3 second gap by the end of the restart lap.

However, it wasn't a perfect restart for everyone. Both Zhou and Norris find themselves falling back through the field, with the latter experiencing awful wheelspin at the restart. Sainz, who is now in fourth, is having to defend hard from Russell who is on mediums. Russell isn't too impressed with Sainz's defending though, complaining that the Ferrari is moving all over the place. As for Hamilton, he is through on Leclerc. It wasn't an easy feat but Ferrari reassure their driver; "We believe that in about five laps the hard will be faster than the medium."

Alpha Tauri seem to be having their best race in a long time, with both Ricciardo and Tsunoda in the top ten. The latter is fighting Piastri for seventh place. Tsunoda challenges the McLaren into turn one through into turn two, tapping Piastri's left rear. Both get through unscathed but in their original positions. The Alpha Tauri driver tries again the next time around but looses it, spinning into the run off and falling out of the points. Piastri's teammate, Norris, is on yet another comeback, taking advantage of Tsunoda's woes and moving into eighth.

Esteban Ocon, who has had a relatively quiet race, tells his engineer: "You can say to Haas that I'm going to go for it so they had better be ready." He attempts THE move on Hulkenberg but fails to find a way past. Norris, who is still on a mission, catches the back of his teammate. Piastri is asked to let Norris through, which he does. He goes after Ricciardo.

At the back of the field, there is a near miss between Sargeant and Stroll. "What is this guy doing?", Sargeant says over teamradio. Back with Norris and he's making a move on Ricciardo, diving around the outside at turn four, somewhere you don't usually see an overtake. But, what about Verstappen? He's still out there, his lead over twelve seconds.

After passing Ricciardo, Norris quickly catches Russell. His team tell him to be patient. But, he does it, taking fifth from the second Mercedes. Remember Ocon's move on Hulkenberg? He finally does it, taking his teammate through with him. There are more brief yellow flags as Valtteri Bottas clips Stroll, sending the Aston Martin into a spin. The Canadian dives straight into the pits to retire the car.

Onto the final lap and Verstappen crosses the finish line to win the Mexican Grand Prix, for a third consecutive year, breaking his own record for most races won over the course of a season. Hamilton comes homes second with Leclerc rounding out the podium places. Then comes Sainz and Norris in fourth and fifth, followed by Russell, Ricciardo, Piastri, Albon and Ocon.

Join me again next week for the Brazilian Grand Prix, in the last of this triple header.

Let’s Talk: Bianca Bustamante - Motorsport’s One to Watch.

Despite the lack of live coverage for the inaugural season of the all-female F1 Academy, avid motorsport fans will be well aware of the impact the series is having on getting more females into the world of motor racing. And, although we still seem a long way off seeing a female race in Formula One, the F1 backed series is looking to improve the chances.

This first season of F1 Academy was dominated by Spanish driver; Marta Garcia, but despite finishing the season in seventh, Bianca Bustamante was the one to make herself a household name and the one to watch for 2024.

There is no denying that F1 Academy, this season, has been riddled with talent, with many drivers displaying their race craft and consistency to a high level. So, why are we singling out Bustamante?

Bianca's road to becoming a racing driver hasn't been an easy feat, hailing from a country that's not as rich as others, with little motorsport history and the perception that a woman's place should be at home, with the family, rather than out on a race track. However, the young Filipina defied the odds, amassing numerous karting championships before getting a chance in single seaters in the, now defunct, W Series. This was an opportunity of a lifetime for Bustamante, which has since helped her evolve her racing career, landing her a seat in the highly anticipated F1 Academy where she made history.

Valencia, 2023. Bianca Bustamante takes the win in race two of the F1 Academy weekend at the Circuito Ricardo Tormo after starting on pole position and dominating the race. This was her first win as a professional race car driver and the win that made her a prevalent figure, not only in womens motorsport, but also in the Philippines as a whole, as the first Filipina winner of F1 Academy and the first Filipina to win an FIA sanctioned race. She followed this up with a second win in Monza, later on in the year.

But after numerous podiums and point finishes in 2023, what's next for the driver that's had to fight her way in motorsport?

In mid-2023, an announcement was made that all F1 teams will need to back one driver in each F1 Academy team for the duration of the 2024 F1 Academy season. For Bustamante, she was the first driver to be announced for 2024, while being backed by McLaren, as she joins their driver development programme. A big step in the world of female motorsport.

"We don't want anyone who just wants to be a race car driver. We want people to want to be World Champion."

That is what McLaren CEO - Zac Brown, said on the signing of Bustamante to the development programme. It's evident, that in only her second year of single seaters, people are seeing the potential of a promising talent.

In the meantime, Bianca knows "that we’re gonna accomplish a lot more in the future." And, she starts with the Formula 4 race at the Macau Grand Prix weekend in mid-November, before the return of F1 Academy in 2024. However, her goal will always be Formula One.

"I will always say that my goal is to be in Formula 1. Always has been. That’s why I put in so much dedication, love, heart, [and] passion into every single thing I do in motorsport because it really is my goal. And I think we’re in the right spot, right time, right moment, and I really do believe that when everything comes together that it is a possibility.”  - Bianca Bustamante.

(Quotes taken from several online resources.)