Silly Season | MP Motorsport in 2023 with two Red Bull juniors in F2?

MP Motorsport could well have two Red Bull juniors at the start of the F2 championship in 2023. In 2022, the Dutch team won the constructors' and drivers' titles, giving them an edge with F1 teams. Places are also still available at other F2 teams.

MP Motorsport the 'place to be'

The feeder classes for Formula 1 are ideal for young talents to prove themselves to F1 teams, but for the junior programmes it is also important to put talents away in the best possible way. Although Formula 2 and 3 use similar material, some teams are more likely to be at the front than others.

MP Motorsport put itself in an excellent position in this respect by finishing first in the constructors' standings and also winning the drivers' title with Felipe Drugovich. Junior drivers are now more likely to knock on the Dutch team's door, as was already evident from the deal with Dennis Hauger. The Norwegian from the Red Bull programme will drive for MP Motorsport in F2 in 2023, having already won the F3 title in 2021.

The second driver has not yet been confirmed, but it could just be another driver from the Red Bull programme. The top four drivers in the 2022 F3 championship will make the switch to F2, with Victor Martins most likely moving on within ART to the French racing stable's F2 team after his title. Oliver Bearman has already been confirmed as Prema's driver for 2023.

Red Bull talents on the market

Zane Maloney and Isack Hadjar are two other names of interest to F2 teams. Maloney has already been designated as Red Bull Racing's reserve driver and, after finishing second in the F3 championship, Helmut Marko will be keen to see Maloney in F2. Maloney competed for Trident in F2 in 2022. The Italian racing stable still has a spot available in F2 for 2023, but is not exactly a high-flyer. A move to a top team such as MP Motorsport, Carlin or ART would then be more interesting.

Hadjar is known to be a big fan of Marko. The young Frenchman finished fourth in the F3 championship on behalf of Hitech and is looking good at Red Bull. Hitech, like Trident, is not a top team in F2, so the chances seem plausible that Marko will want to stable his pupil with another team. Carlin and MP Motorsport still have spots available. ART, as a French team, could also be interesting for Hadjar.

The last spots in F2 that are still up for grabs are the most interesting in that respect. MP Motorsport, as champion, still has a seat available, Carlin still has a spot alongside Enzo Fittipaldi and ART has not yet confirmed any drivers, although we can assume Martins will drive for ART anyway. It also remains to be seen what Theo Pourchaire will do. Earlier, he announced that he will not drive another F2 year, but F1 is not yet in the cards for him in 2023. A longer stay with ART is then a possibility.

Hitech (no drivers announced yet) and Trident (only Clement Novalak confirmed) also have spots available, but as respective numbers five and nine in the last constructors' championship, they may not be as interesting to F1 teams. With Jak Crawford (Red Bull), Caio Collet (Alpine) and Juri Vips, there are still some interesting names free for 2023.