Meet the new driver lineup for 2022

As we approach the last races of the season, teams are in preparation for the new year. The 2022 season will see many changes with the introduction of a new car design, the continuation of Sprint qualifying, a record-breaking calendar of 23 races, and what many look forward to at the end of the year: a mix in the driver lineup. With Finnish driver and world champion Kimi Räikkonen retiring at the end of the year this leaves one new driver on the Alfa Romeo seat.

While not all contracts have been finalized and released to the public, here is the updated driver line-up for the 2022 season.

With his contract coming to an end in 2021, 7-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has signed for 2 more years with Mercedes until 2023. His current teammate Valteri Bottas wasn’t offered a contract extension and will be leaving the team at the end of the 2021 season.

To fill up the second Mercedes seat is now Williams driver and former member of the Mercedes young driver program, George Russell. Russell has signed a “long-term” deal with the team yet no news has been released in a set number of years.

Teams Redbull, McLaren, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Alpine, Alpha Tauri, and Haas will keep the same driver lineup as drivers either have ongoing contracts with their teams or renewed their previous ones.

As his contract with Mercedes failed to extend for the next season, Valteri Bottas will take the Alfa Romeo seat of Kimi Räikkonen in the Alfa Romeo Sauber Team. The second seat of the team has yet to be determined as there is no news regarding the contract of Antonio Giovanazzi. Since the Italian driver has yet to be given a contract renewal, several names have been linked to the seat including Formula 2 drivers Guanyu Zhou and Oscar Piastri.

With British driver George Russell leaving team Williams next year, this opens up a seat on the team alongside Nicholas Latifi who will remain in the team for 2022. As a replacement, the team has signed current Red Bull Racing reserve driver Alex Albon who has taken part in Formula 1 in 2019 and 2020.

19 out of 20 seats are finalized for next year’s lineup, we will definitely know the 20 seats before Winter testing in 2022.

Due to the recent conflicts in Russia, Haas have announced the firing of Russia driver Nikita Mazepin. To replace him in the American team's lineup for 2022 is Dannish driver Kevin Magnussen who will join Mick Schumacher in the team.

(Last Updated: 27 March 2022)

All 20 seats are filled with the second Alfa Romeo seat has been given to Formula 2 driver Guanyu Zhou. The current Alpine development driver is set to make his Formula 1 debut in March being the first full-time driver from China in Formula One history. Zhou’s appointment entails Italian driver Antonio Giovanazzi won’t be returning for the 2022 season. The current Alfa Romeo driver steps out after 3 years in the competition having finished every race so far this year scoring points only once – in Monaco.