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Four rookies on the track on Friday, will we see them again next year?

Four rookies on the track on Friday, will we see them again next year?

21-10-2022 15:23 Last update: 18:22

GPblog.com

This weekend, four rookie drivers will drive in the first free practice session on Friday. Here's a rundown of who they are, where we might know them from, and whether they might return.

Logan Sargeant

Of all the rookies this weekend, Logan Sargeant probably has the best chance of securing a permanent place in F1 next year. The American has been linked to Williams through the driver academy for a long time, and it just so happens that there is a seat free there now that the team is letting Nicholas Latifi go. Sargeant will drive for Williams this weekend, so a lot will depend on how well he does in free practice.

Currently, Sargeant is in his first season in Formula 2. With one race to go in that championship, he is in third place. Second place is out of the question, but he can still drop down in the standings.

Theo Pourchaire

Theo Pourchaire will take a seat in Valtteri Bottas' Alfa Romeo. Like Sargeant, Pourchaire also drives in F2, where he is already assured of second place in the standings. But despite Pourchaire doing better than Sargeant, his chances of promotion to Formula 1 seem a lot slimmer.

This is because the Frenchman is linked to the Sauber training programme and is thus attached to the Alfa Romeo team. There, both drivers are already confirmed for next year and Pourchaire himself was offered a contract as a reserve driver for 2023. In that role, he is likely to be able to make many more appearances like this in the coming year.

Alex Palou

Alex Palou is a Spanish driver from Indycar, where he races for the Chip Ganassi Racing team. Palou will drive in Daniel Ricciardo's car during Friday's practice. In the 2022 IndyCar championship, Palou finished fifth. Last year, he became champion in only his second season.

This summer, Palou made headlines as his team announced on Twitter that his contract had been extended, but a few hours later Palou announced on Twitter that he knew nothing about it and would drive for McLaren next year. For those who just had déjà vu: indeed, the exact same thing that happened with Oscar Piastri. But where Piastri managed to pull off a deal with McLaren, a judge ruled that Palou had to stay with Chip Ganassi.

A move to F1 seems very unlikely for Palou. As mentioned, for 2023 Palou already has a contract in IndyCar, but he is also unlikely to switch to F1 the following season. McLaren has just brought in a promising new driver with Piastri and Norris does not seem intent on leaving in the near future. Perhaps then other seats will become available that he can claim, but that will have to be seen by then.

Robert Shwartzman

Robert Shwartzman will drive one of the Ferraris, but it is not yet known which one. Shwartzman has been linked to Ferrari through their drivers academy since 2017, so he has also been mentioned as a possible candidate for a seat in F1 for several years.

In 2019, Shwartzman became champion in Formula 3. In 2020 and 2021, Shwartzman was still racing in Formula 2, as a teammate of first Mick Schumacher and then Oscar Piastri. He finished fourth and second respectively and left F2 at the end of last year.

The link with Ferrari is valuable, but has so far not guaranteed Shwartzman a place in F1. It is theoretically possible that he could go to Haas, but he does not really seem to be in the picture there. Although Schumacher did get a place there partly because of his Ferrari connection in 2021, the link between Haas and Ferrari seems to have broken down by now. And although Shwartzman has been in motorsport for quite a while now, he has not been able to add any major victories to his name in recent years. So he will probably have to make do with a position as a test driver.

Bonus: Antonio Giovinazzi

Antonio Giovinazzi is, of course, no rookie. The Italian had been driving for Sauber (Alfa Romeo) for three seasons with rather mediocre results. This year he is a test driver for Ferrari, but Giovinazzi is angling for a return to Formula 1 and has his sights set on Mick Schumacher's seat. This weekend, he will drive in Kevin Magnussen's Haas and thus will compete directly against Schumacher. The Haas team will no doubt be watching with suspicion how the two drivers do.