After a summer of speculation, contract extensions for Max Verstappen and Lando Norris suggest the elite seats on the Formula 1 grid are locked in for at least the next couple of years. Four-time world champion Verstappen had been linked with a move to either Mercedes or McLaren but instead signed a Red Bull extension that ties him to the team until 2030. There was little doubt that reigning world champion Norris' long-term future lay with McLaren, but team and driver made that official by announcing a multi-year extension on Saturday.
Meanwhile, it was perhaps the superb form of championship leader Kimi Antonelli that convinced Mercedes boss Toto Wolff he didn't need to poach Verstappen from Red Bull. Given Wolff and Mercedes also manage Antonelli, there appears little doubt that he will remain with the Silver Arrows for many years to come. George Russell's situation is similar, and the Brit has repeatedly expressed his desire to remain with Mercedes.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Ferrari gave Charles Leclerc an extension in June, while Lewis Hamilton has insisted on several occasions this year that he has no plans to hang up his helmet any time soon. With the line-ups of F1's 'big four' teams seemingly set for the short-term future, Sky Sports F1 examine when and how that situation could change. While both Mercedes and McLaren have a track record of avoiding giving one driver priority status over the other, George Russell and Oscar Piastri are at risk of becoming seen as second fiddles.
Norris crucially came out on top of Piastri in the battle for last year's drivers' title, and has adapted to F1's new 2026 cars much faster than the Australian. Russell started the year as the title favourite but has been clearly outperformed by Antonelli, with the Italian retaining huge amounts of room for improvement having only turned 20 last week. Both Piastri and Russell will retain belief that they can turn the tables on their team-mates, next season if not during the remainder of their current campaigns, but there is no guarantee that will be achieved.
In the event either driver continues to be consistently outperformed over the next 18 months, they might begin to feel that their prospects of winning a maiden championship would ultimately be improved by a switch of team. Hamilton has insisted he plans to be around for a while yet, but it remains to be seen how long the 41-year-old will continue in F1. He's understood to have an option in his current deal to drive for the team until the end of the 2028 season, which would take him to the brink of his 44th birthday.
While Fernando Alonso continues to amaze by competing in F1 at the age of 45, the Spaniard's example is far from the norm, and Hamilton driving beyond 2028 would be surprising to many. That means there is a decent chance a Ferrari seat opens up for the 2029 season, if not earlier. Britain's Oliver Bearman, who has been loaned out to Haas from the Ferrari junior programme, is a candidate from within, but the opportunity to drive in the Italian team's iconic red will always attract interest from just about every driver on the grid.
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