F1: Rise of the Rookies

By Sports Editor Emma O’Sullivan

The future of rookie drivers in Formula 1 looked to be unclear at the beginning of 2024. Opportunities seemed to be at an all-time low after it was confirmed that the grid would remain the same for the beginning of 2024 as it had been at the end of 2023. Of the three rookies in 2023, only Oscar Piastri looked to be staying on the grid long-term. Nyck de Vries had been binned off by AlphaTauri/RB only ten races into his F1 career for the veteran Daniel Ricciardo, while Logan Sargeant had signed for Williams for only a year, with rumours of him being replaced in 2025. Liam Lawson had a stellar cameo for AlphaTauri/RB mid-season following an injury for Ricciardo, however he was rewarded for this effort with another year on the sidelines with no racing. The trend of continuing with established, consistent drivers as opposed to taking a risk on a rookie seemed to be increasing by the year. Was F2 no longer deemed enough in terms of preparation for an F1 career? Was the market value of established F1 drivers becoming evermore secure thanks to their increasing popularity - most likely due to Netflix’s “Drive to Survive” documentary - meaning it no longer made sense to be constantly swapping out drivers? 

The fate of rookies in Formula 1 has dramatically changed over the course of 2024 however, beginning with the second race of the season in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Ollie Bearman subbed in at the last minute at Ferrari for Carlos Sainz, (who had emergency appendix surgery) and subsequently broke multiple F1 records, scoring points on his debut at 18. He will drive for Haas in 2025, along with Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), Jack Doohan (Alpine) and Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) who will make their debuts next year. Not only that, but Franco Colapinto (Williams) and Liam Lawson (RB) have been given opportunities to drive in F1 for the remainder of the 2024 season. So, how has the fortune of rookie drivers changed so dramatically, with the potential to have a quarter of the grid next year making their full season debuts?

Mid-Season Cameos in 2023 and 2024

The surprise opportunities granted to rookie drivers over the course of the last two seasons has not only given them a shot at the top with nothing to lose, but has forced some teams to look at their current line-ups. The first instance of this was when Liam Lawson stepped in the AlphaTauri (now RB) of Daniel Ricciardo for five races last year, as a reserve driver, following a wrist injury for Ricciardo at Zandvoort. His most impressive weekend came in Singapore, where he was the only Red Bull driver to advance to the final stage of qualifying, knocking Max Verstappen out of contention in the process, and scored his first F1 points in what is considered the most physically demanding race of the season. However, this particular stint didn’t amount to an F1 seat immediately for the 22 year-old Kiwi, as he had found out prior to the Singapore qualifying session that he would continue as a reserve driver for 2024. It would take just over a year for him to get another shot at the top, when RB and Red Bull decided to drop Daniel Ricciardo and put Lawson in the car for the remaining 6 races of 2024. So far Lawson has impressed, and is potentially within a shot of being a part of the Red Bull team in 2025 to make his full season debut (as he would not be classed as a rookie), if the rumours are to be believed.

Ollie Bearman is certain to be on the grid for his rookie season in 2025 with Haas, but it was through his impressive last-minute cameo for Ferrari in Jeddah that put him on the map as a serious contender for a Formula 1 seat. After achieving pole position in F2 on Thursday, Bearman was called up on Friday morning to leave his F2 duties behind and drive for Ferrari in place of Carlos Sainz, who had had his appendix removed that morning. Bearman qualified P11 on the grid, driving up to P7 in the race and scoring points on debut as an 18 year-old, becoming the youngest Brit to score points in F1. He continued to impress for Haas during FP1 sessions and it was announced at Silverstone this year that Bearman would have a seat in 2025. Despite having a decent rookie F2 season in 2023, the 19 year-old has not hit the heights in 2024 in F2 and has, for a part of the season, held a higher standings position in F1 than he did in F2. But clearly his F1 debut was held in higher regard than his season in F2 for Haas. He has since made his debut for Haas also, driving in Baku in place of Magnussen, finishing 10th ahead of his teammate and scoring another point. He also raced in Brazil for Haas, in what ended up being a chaotic, weather-stricken weekend.

Franco Colapinto has been one of the biggest surprises of the 2024 season. The 21 year-old Argentinian driver came into the Monza weekend with pretty much no preparation and less than a week’s notice following Williams’ decision to drop Logan Sargeant. His rookie F2 season had been somewhat fruitful, with several podiums, however he was never in a position to fight for the title. He has made his mark since he joined F1, however, scoring points on debut, and continuing a four-race scoring run in a Williams! He has outperformed and out-qualified his teammate Alex Albon on several occasions, to the surprise of many. The issue he currently faces is that he has no seat secured for next season. Williams have the driver line-up of Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz next year, meaning the only availability currently is with RB. Whatever happens to Colapinto in 2025, he has certainly aced his F1 audition so far.

The 2025 Grid

Ollie Bearman has a seat secure for next season, and there is much expectation that Liam Lawson will also - the question is with which Red Bull team will that be. Franco Colapinto has nothing lined up as of yet, although rumours continue to surround him. There are three other rookies confirmed to be joining the grid next year - Jack Doohan at Alpine, Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes, who will replace the departing Lewis Hamilton, and Gabriel Bortoleto at Sauber. Doohan has been the reserve driver for Alpine this year, taking a year out after finishing 3rd in F2 in 2023. The 21 year-old Australian went head to head with Mick Schumacher for the seat, and beat him to sign the contract to be on the grid next season, and will be the first Alpine junior driver to be promoted to F1 since Romain Grosjean in 2009.

Kimi Antonelli has had a stellar junior career so far, winning Italian F4 in 2022 and Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA) in 2023. He skipped F3 on the ladder of junior categories and went straight up to F2 as a seventeen-year-old. The Italian had a slow start to the season but has since found his footing, and combined with F1 testing with Mercedes and some FP1 outings, he was given the nod to replace Lewis Hamilton in 2025 - an outstanding achievement for an eighteen-year-old. 

Bortoleto is fresh off of winning F3 in 2023 as a rookie, and will look to emulate Oscar Piastri by winning F3 and F2 in back-to-back seasons. Regardless of how his F2 season finishes however, the twenty-year-old Brazilian knows he has an F1 seat secured with Sauber, and will line up on the grid in 2025.

Bortoleto, Doohan and Antonelli will make their debuts in Melbourne in March of next year, and Bearman, potentially joined by Lawson and Colapinto, will make their full season debuts - despite not being classed as “rookies” as they have driven more than two Grand Prix each. There are some remaining uncertainties and potential announcements still to come in terms of the 2025 grid, but if the rookies of the last two years have shown us anything, it’s that next year is guaranteed to be entertaining - no matter who ends up on the grid.