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

After a two-week break, we move into the second half of the Formula 1 season with the Hungarian Grand Prix this weekend.

Mercedes have won the past two races, through George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, but Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has a commanding lead in the drivers’ championship.

BBC Sport F1 correspondent Andrew Benson answers your questions before the race at the Hungaroring.

Do you think there will be any more driver announcements before the summer break as a result of last week’s Silverstone testing? – Ben

Esteban Ocon has signed to join Haas next season, BBC Sport has been told, and this is expected to be announced imminently, quite possibly in the run-up to this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix.

This comes from well-placed sources close to Haas and Mercedes, who manage the Frenchman.

As Haas have already signed Briton Oliver Bearman for 2025, that means Kevin Magnussen is out of the US-based team at the end of this season and is looking to either Alpine, Sauber or Williams for an F1 lifeline.

The same goes for Valtteri Bottas – and Carlos Sainz, for that matter, whose future following Ferrari’s decision to replace him with Lewis Hamilton is still not known.

The question, though, is presumably predicated on Sergio Perez’s future after reserve driver Liam Lawson’s run in the Red Bull last week.

Perez remains under major pressure, and there are questions about Daniel Ricciardo’s position at RB, although he has shown some improved form in recent races.

Will Red Bull make changes around these seats? It’s entirely possible.

The decision is Red Bull team principal Christian Horner’s – motorsport adviser Helmut Marko does not have the power and influence he had following the power struggle at Red Bull in the wake of the accusations of sexual harassment and coercive, controlling behaviour levelled at Horner by a female employee at the end of last year.

Horner, who denies the allegations, backs Ricciardo and has so far given no hints about his feelings on Perez and Lawson, other than to say that the Mexican needs to recover his form. Horner also signed Perez for another two years as recently as Monaco, so if Horner sacked or demoted him, it would mean major egg on his face.

Logan Sargeant is also on shaky ground at Williams, but it remains to be seen whether he will be dropped during the season.

Do you think that with Sergio Perez’s current form, it’s possible for McLaren, Ferrari or Mercedes to win the constructors’ championship? – Jack

Red Bull head into the second half of the season – which starts with this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix – with a 71-point advantage over Ferrari in the constructors’ championship.

McLaren are 78 points off the lead and Mercedes 152. All those margins are significant; Mercedes’ is pretty massive.

Mathematically, though, all four could still win it. How realistic is it? It rather depends on whether some or all of them can start to beat Max Verstappen consistently.

If Perez’s poor run of results continues, that would play into their hands. But at the moment not only is Verstappen continuing to bang in the big points, but the others are not consistently beating him. He has won just three of the past seven races, but has finished second twice and fifth and sixth in the others.

Lando Norris and McLaren have failed to deliver on opportunities – not guaranteed ones, but chances certainly – to win all the past four races in Canada, Spain, Austria and Silverstone.

Mercedes have won the past two grands prix, but George Russell let slip a chance in Canada.

Ferrari, meanwhile, have had a difficult run since Charles Leclerc’s win in Monaco and are in a bit of a muddle when it comes to their latest upgrade, which had to be taken off the car at Silverstone.

If they can all start to beat Verstappen, and Perez’s form continues to be weak, then, yes, Red Bull can be beaten in the constructors’ championship. But it’s a big if.

And that’s without even thinking about whether Perez will be dropped and replaced by someone else at the summer break – which is a definite possibility.

Adrian Newey said that two regrets he has are never working with Ferrari or working with Lewis Hamilton. Do you think it will now happen? – Dean

Newey was asked in an interview with BBC Sport last November which driver he most wished he had worked with, and he actually named Fernando Alonso, although I believe he has expressed similar sentiments about Hamilton.

As for design chief Newey’s future following his decision to leave Red Bull, the word is that the chances of him moving to Ferrari have receded significantly.

Sources close to Ferrari have told BBC Sport that chief executive officer Benedetto Vigna has baulked at the level of salary Newey commands and that there is a concern he would have too much power and could override the system inside the company.

Senior sources in the sport say that Newey is actively engaged with Aston Martin at the moment, and that this is looking his most likely destination. McLaren remain another possibility.

Newey, meanwhile, is said not to have made up his mind where to go.

Lando Norris certainly has a lot of talent. Is the feeling in the paddock and indeed at McLaren that he is ruthless enough to take on Max Verstappen? – Conor

Norris’ big issue right now is that he and McLaren are collectively making too many mistakes.

He had a chance to win the Canadian Grand Prix – but he and the team did not decide quickly enough to pit under a crucial safety car. Had they, he would have had the lead over Verstappen and track position in the closing stages.

Norris was on pole in Spain, but a slightly less good start than Verstappen’s cost him the win there.

In Austria, his crash with Verstappen was unquestionably the Red Bull driver’s fault, and he was penalised for it. But could Norris have passed him earlier, or avoided the collision by moving further left and then having another go?

And at Silverstone, he missed his marks in the crucial final pit stop, and between him and the team the wrong choice of tyres was put on the car.

Had they chosen mediums – their default choice going into the race, and one they considered at the time – he would likely have passed Lewis Hamilton in the closing laps, judging by the pace of team-mate Oscar Piastri, who did fit mediums.

The feeling is that McLaren are still very new at racing at the front, and are not quite up to the required standard operationally. All teams go through this learning process.

It will only be fair to judge Norris’ level of ruthlessness when there have been more examples of him racing Verstappen at the front.

At Silverstone, why was Verstappen faster on the hard tyre compared to Norris on softer rubber? I thought softer compounds were faster. – Matt

Soft tyres are usually faster over one lap or a shorter distance in a race. But when it comes to a long race stint, it becomes a trade-off between ultimate grip and durability.

Basically, a soft tyre might start off faster, but it degrades more quickly. So there comes a point – known as the crossover – where a harder compound is actually faster during a stint.

This is what happened at Silverstone. Norris’ soft tyres degraded quickly and Verstappen’s hards stayed in good shape, hence the Dutchman was able to chase down Norris and pass him.

Lewis Hamilton was also on soft tyres, but he kept his in better shape for longer, so was just able to hold off the Red Bull for the win.

As discussed above, Norris and McLaren should have chosen the medium compound at their final stop – they had a brand new set available. Team principal Andrea Stella admitted their mistake after the race.

What tests are in place to ensure that a driver is passed fit to drive? Specifically, are there certain eye tests to be taken and passed? – Tim

There are no specific tests required for a driver to be given a licence to drive in F1, which is called a super licence, other than to meet the qualifying criteria in terms of career results.

However, before applying for a superlicence, drivers have to have an international licence granted by their national sporting authority (ASN) and that requires them to pass a medical.

If an F1 driver is involved in a heavy crash, then there is an alert system in place that means they must report to the medical centre for tests and evaluation.

The tests are outlines in the FIA’s sporting code, appendix L, chapter 2.