Sainz, Ocon and the uncertain future of Alpine

The Formula 1 driver market for 2025 remains intriguing with nine of next season's 20 seats still unclaimed. Sergio Perez has secured a coveted Red Bull seat, but Carlos Sainz remains available after unexpectedly losing his 2025 Ferrari seat to Lewis Hamilton. Esteban Ocon is also on the market after his departure from Alpine was confirmed.

Sainz is a key player in the 2025 driver market, especially with Max Verstappen unlikely to leave Red Bull before his contract expires in 2028. With Mercedes unlikely to replace Hamilton and Red Bull renewing Perez's contract until 2026 , Sainz's decision appears to be a choice between Sauber/Audi and Williams.

Williams team principal James Vowles is a strategic and inspirational leader who has successfully sold his vision to other drivers. Sainz's decision is not about money, but about where he sees the future of the sport. He can choose a new project with Audi, a successful entity in world sport but not in Formula 1, or go with Williams, a well-known entity that has been successful in F1 but has had recent times.

At 27 and with 141 Grand Prix races under his belt, including a win at the 2021 Hungarian GP, ​​Ocon is theoretically in the prime of his career. However, his options to continue in F1 appear to be limited to the area of ​​the grid where the struggling Alpines are currently running. Ocon appears to be a 'Plan B' for Sauber/Audi should they fail to land Sainz, while he has also been linked with a seat at Haas.

Alpine, one of three teams with none of its seats still filled for 2025, is currently in a period of upheaval on and off the track. They are a working team, but they have to put the house in order. The team needs investment and there is speculation that Zhou Guanyu and his backers might be willing to invest. Zhou is a former Renault academy driver, so it would be a return to the stable that brought him to F1 in the first place.

As the championship moves to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix, the future of the driver market remains uncertain and exciting.