The competition for one of the last remaining starting places for the F1 season 2022 is fierce.
Alfa Romeo could choose to keep Antonio Giovinazzi for a fourth season. But there are several promising newcomers, some of whom come with the added lure of financial support that could make a whole new lineup next year with the new Valtteri Bottas.
Team principal Frederic Vasseur told RaceFans that he intends to make a decision at the end of the month. Who should he choose?
Guanyu Zhou
The 22-year-old, who ranks second in the Formula 2 standings, is widely considered a favorite to drive, not only because of his speed, but will also be the first Chinese driver in Formula 1 and a more significant interest Market. After spending four years in Ferrari’s junior driver program, Renault (now Alpine) picked him up in 2019.
Zhou topped up his super license points at the start of the season with a win over a generally experienced Asian Formula 3 field and has a good chance of winning the Formula 2 title before the end of the year. That would be no less than expected from the driver who was the best rookie in the F2 in 2019.
Oscar Piastri
The 20-year-old Piastri says he is not considered a leading contender for the seat, although he would certainly be the first choice based on the results alone. As an alpine junior like Zhou, he is on track to win his third title in as many seasons after following his 2019 Formula Renault Eurocup title with an FIA Formula 3 success last year.
Last weekend in Monza, Piastri proved exactly why he tops the Formula 2 points table by taking the only “real” pole position at pure speed for the second weekend in a row and keeping Zhou in the mirror while he saw the many opportunities avoided getting involved in costly incidents. He has a serious chance of mimicking George Russell and Valtteri Bottas’s feat of winning consecutive F2 and F3 (formerly GP3) titles, but unlike them, he is expected to be overlooked in an F1 drive next year.
Display | Become a RaceFans supporter and
Theo Pourchaire
Pourchaire has already tested for Alfa Romeo The rapid rise of 18-year-old Pourchaire caught the attention of Sauber, who heads Alfa Romeo’s F1 team, and named it her own junior program. He delivered an F4 title in Germany, almost beat Piastri to the F3 honor last year and is already a race winner in the F2. His pace in Monaco on his first visit to the principality was astounding, as was the serenity he displayed on the path to victory.
Unfortunately, an injury in the next round in Azerbaijan threw his progress off track. Now he is fifth in the overall standings and a title bid is still possible, although he lost ground to Piastri and Zhou in Monza. Sauber doesn’t want to push him into Formula 1, and a second Formula 2 season currently seems likely, followed by a possible promotion in 2023.
Nyck de Vries
Mercedes was keen to find a place for its junior driver, who won the Formula 2 title in 2019 and won the Formula E world championship crown that year. But after missing the Williams drive to Alexander Albon, the same could happen at Alfa Romeo, as Vasseur has admitted that there are “complications” arising from his association with Mercedes.
Antonio Giovinazzi
In his third Formula 1 season, Giovinazzi left his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen more and more behind in qualifying and brought his car into Q3 in the last two races. However, he failed to convert these chances into points, especially due to an unnecessary collision with Carlos Sainz Jnr last weekend.
Ferrari has made it clear that they would like to see him in one of their customer team’s cars, but that doesn’t guarantee him the drive.
Display | Become a RaceFans supporter and
Mick Schumacher
The Ferrari Driver Academy member would surely welcome the opportunity to get into a slightly less competitive car or work with someone who is less fixated on beating him than his current teammate. But Ferrari seems content to keep Schumacher at Haas next year.
Callum Ilott
Ilott has found a new home in IndyCar. Last year’s Formula 2 runner-up (after Schumacher), Ilott did well on his IndyCar debut last weekend and seems to have a good chance of a full-time assignment with the newly formed Juncos Hollinger team next year.
Robert Shwartzman
Shwartzman, another from the extensive list of up-and-coming Ferrari talents, started 2020 strong alongside Schumacher at Prema and then faded away. Similarly, he was dwarfed by the less experienced Piastri on the team this year.
Robert Kubica
Raikkonen’s most recent Covid-19 fight presented the former Grand Prix winner with an unexpected opportunity to return to F1 racing. However, Kubica admitted that for a full-time driver in 2021, he’s an outsider at best.
I say
Alfa Romeo will have a hard time rejecting Zhou, who has the compelling combination of skill and wealth – with an alleged $ 30 million sponsorship behind him. Formula 1 would be delighted to welcome the Chinese Grand Prix back to the calendar next season after a two-year absence with its first local driver.
It would be wrong to just label Zhou as a “pay driver” – he is clearly capable and the special challenges of coming from a country that has not produced as many top drivers as Europe or Australia should not be underestimated. However, there are still more exciting talents.
It seems particularly unfair that Piastri’s success goes unrewarded, so I am very keen to see him get a ride right now. The obvious potential of Pourchaire cannot be overlooked either – if he got the gig for 2022 it would be hard to indulge in him.
You say
Who should Alfa Romeo hire for 2022? Cast your vote below and say something in the comments.
Who should Alfa Romeo hire as Valtteri Bottas’ teammates in 2022?
- Guanyu-Zhou (13%)
- Oscar Piastri (21%)
- Theo Pourchaire (9%)
- Nyck de Vries (9%)
- Antonio Giovinazzi (18%)
- Mick Schumacher (9%)
- Callum Ilott (9%)
- Robert Shwartzmann (5%)
- Robert Kubica (0%)
- Someone else (7%)
Total number of voters: 56
Loading …
A RaceFans account is required to vote. If you don’t have an account yet, register here or read more about registration here. When this poll is closed, the result will be displayed in place of the voting form.
Debates and polls
Search all debates and polls
