F1 Q&A: What driver changes might be coming soon?

After a two-week break, we move into nan 2nd half of nan Formula 1 play pinch nan Hungarian Grand Prix this weekend.

Mercedes person won nan past 2 races, done George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, but Red Bull's Max Verstappen has a commanding lead successful nan drivers' championship.

BBC Sport F1 analogous Andrew Benson answers your questions earlier nan title astatine nan Hungaroring.

Do you deliberation location will beryllium immoderate much driver announcements earlier nan summertime break arsenic a consequence of past week’s Silverstone testing? - Ben

Esteban Ocon has signed to subordinate Haas adjacent season, BBC Sport has been told, and this is expected to beryllium announced imminently, rather perchance successful nan run-up to this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix.

This comes from well-placed sources adjacent to Haas and Mercedes, who negociate nan Frenchman.

As Haas person already signed Briton Oliver Bearman for 2025, that intends Kevin Magnussen is retired of nan US-based squad astatine nan extremity of this play and is looking to either Alpine, Sauber aliases Williams for an F1 lifeline.

The aforesaid goes for Valtteri Bottas - and Carlos Sainz, for that matter, whose early pursuing Ferrari’s determination to switch him pinch Lewis Hamilton is still not known.

The question, though, is presumably predicated connected Sergio Perez’s early aft reserve driver Liam Lawson’s tally successful nan Red Bull past week.

Perez remains nether awesome pressure, and location are questions astir Daniel Ricciardo’s position astatine RB, though he has shown immoderate improved shape successful caller races.

Will Red Bull make changes astir these seats? It’s wholly possible.

The determination is Red Bull squad main Christian Horner’s - motorsport advisor Helmut Marko does not person nan powerfulness and power he had pursuing nan powerfulness struggle astatine Red Bull successful nan aftermath of nan accusations of intersexual harassment and coercive, controlling behaviour levelled astatine Horner by a female worker astatine nan extremity of past year.

Horner, who denies nan allegations, backs Ricciardo and has truthful acold fixed nary hints astir his feelings connected Perez and Lawson, different than to opportunity that nan Mexican needs to retrieve his form. Horner besides signed Perez for different 2 years arsenic precocious arsenic Monaco, truthful if Horner sacked aliases demoted him, it would mean awesome ovum connected his face.

Logan Sargeant is besides connected shaky crushed astatine Williams, but it remains to beryllium seen whether he will beryllium dropped during nan season.

Do you deliberation that pinch Sergio Perez's existent form, it's imaginable for McLaren, Ferrari aliases Mercedes to triumph nan constructors’ championship? - Jack

Red Bull caput into nan 2nd half of nan play - which starts pinch this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix - pinch a 71-point advantage complete Ferrari successful nan constructors’ championship.

McLaren are 78 points disconnected nan lead and Mercedes 152. All those margins are significant; Mercedes’ is beautiful massive.

Mathematically, though, each 4 could still triumph it. How realistic is it? It alternatively depends connected whether immoderate aliases each of them tin commencement to hit Max Verstappen consistently.

If Perez’s mediocre tally of results continues, that would play into their hands. But astatine nan infinitesimal not only is Verstappen continuing to bang successful nan large points, but nan others are not consistently beating him. He has won conscionable 3 of nan past 7 races, but has vanished 2nd doubly and 5th and sixth successful nan others.

Lando Norris and McLaren person grounded to present connected opportunities - not guaranteed ones, but chances surely - to triumph each nan past 4 races successful Canada, Spain, Austria and Silverstone.

Mercedes person won nan past 2 grands prix, but George Russell fto gaffe a chance successful Canada.

Ferrari, meanwhile, person had a difficult tally since Charles Leclerc’s triumph successful Monaco and are successful a spot of a muddle erstwhile it comes to their latest upgrade, which had to beryllium taken disconnected nan car astatine Silverstone.

If they tin each commencement to hit Verstappen, and Perez’s shape continues to beryllium weak, then, yes, Red Bull tin beryllium beaten successful nan constructors’ championship. But it’s a large if.

And that’s without moreover reasoning astir whether Perez will beryllium dropped and replaced by personification other astatine nan summertime break - which is simply a definite possibility.

Adrian Newey said that 2 regrets he has are ne'er moving pinch Ferrari aliases moving pinch Lewis Hamilton. Do you deliberation it will now happen? – Dean

Newey was asked successful an question and reply pinch BBC Sport past November which driver he astir wished he had worked with, and he really named Fernando Alonso, though I judge he has expressed akin sentiments astir Hamilton.

As for creation main Newey’s early pursuing his determination to time off Red Bull, nan connection is that nan chances of him moving to Ferrari person receded significantly.

Sources adjacent to Ferrari person told BBC Sport that main executive serviceman Benedetto Vigna has baulked astatine nan level of net Newey commands and that location is simply a interest he would person excessively overmuch powerfulness and could override nan strategy wrong nan company.

Senior sources successful nan athletics opportunity that Newey is actively engaged pinch Aston Martin astatine nan moment, and that this is looking his astir apt destination. McLaren stay different possibility.

Newey, meanwhile, is said not to person made up his mind wherever to go.

Lando Norris surely has a batch of talent. Is nan emotion successful nan paddock and so astatine McLaren that he is ruthless capable to return connected Max Verstappen? - Conor

Norris’ large rumor correct now is that he and McLaren are collectively making excessively galore mistakes.

He had a chance to triumph nan Canadian Grand Prix - but he and nan squad did not determine quickly capable to pit nether a important information car. Had they, he would person had nan lead complete Verstappen and way position successful nan closing stages.

Norris was connected rod successful Spain, but a somewhat little bully commencement than Verstappen’s costs him nan triumph there.

In Austria, his clang pinch Verstappen was unquestionably nan Red Bull driver’s fault, and he was penalised for it. But could Norris person passed him earlier, aliases avoided nan collision by moving further near and past having different go?

And astatine Silverstone, he missed his marks successful nan important last pit stop, and betwixt him and nan squad nan incorrect prime of tyres was put connected nan car.

Had they chosen mediums - their default prime going into nan race, and 1 they considered astatine nan clip - he would apt person passed Lewis Hamilton successful nan closing laps, judging by nan gait of team-mate Oscar Piastri, who did fresh mediums.

The emotion is that McLaren are still very caller astatine racing astatine nan front, and are not rather up to nan required modular operationally. All teams spell done this learning process.

It will only beryllium adjacent to judge Norris’ level of ruthlessness erstwhile location person been much examples of him racing Verstappen astatine nan front.

At Silverstone, why was Verstappen faster connected nan difficult tyre compared to Norris connected softer rubber? I thought softer compounds were faster. - Matt

Soft tyres are usually faster complete 1 thigh aliases a shorter region successful a race. But erstwhile it comes to a agelong title stint, it becomes a trade-off betwixt eventual grip and durability.

Basically, a soft tyre mightiness commencement disconnected faster, but it degrades much quickly. So location comes a constituent - known arsenic nan crossover - wherever a harder compound is really faster during a stint.

This is what happened astatine Silverstone. Norris’ soft tyres degraded quickly and Verstappen’s hards stayed successful bully shape, hence nan Dutchman was capable to pursuit down Norris and walk him.

Lewis Hamilton was besides connected soft tyres, but he kept his successful amended style for longer, truthful was conscionable capable to clasp disconnected nan Red Bull for nan win.

As discussed above, Norris and McLaren should person chosen nan mean compound astatine their last extremity - they had a marque caller group available. Team main Andrea Stella admitted their correction aft nan race.

What tests are successful spot to guarantee that a driver is passed fresh to drive? Specifically, are location definite oculus tests to beryllium taken and passed? – Tim

There are nary circumstantial tests required for a driver to beryllium fixed a licence to thrust successful F1, which is called a ace licence, different than to meet nan qualifying criteria successful position of profession results.

However, earlier applying for a superlicence, drivers person to person an world licence granted by their nationalist sporting authority (ASN) and that requires them to walk a medical.

If an F1 driver is progressive successful a dense crash, past location is an alert strategy successful spot that intends they must study to nan aesculapian centre for tests and evaluation.

The tests are outlines successful nan FIA’s sporting code, appendix L, section 2., external