RACING UNDER A CLOUD

ONE OF THE MANY JOYS FORMULA 1 FANS

have been forced to forego in 2020 is the ‘silly season’, that annual frenzy of speculation over which out-of-contract driver will end up where. This year the biggest, most significant moves were tied up long before the season began. And while it’s not unprecedented for a driver to telegraph their departure more than a season in advance – Fernando Alonso announced his move from Renault to McLaren at the tail end of 2005 – it’s rare indeed for three big names to be serving out their notice period thus.

Carlos Sainz set the dominoes toppling by signing a 2021 contract with Ferrari, which subsequently announced that it hadn’t even bothered to open renewal negotiations with Sebastian Vettel. Daniel Ricciardo, meanwhile, gleefully bagged the McLaren seat vacated by Sainz, a move that prompted the team principal of his current employer, Renault, to issue a huffy and rebarbative statement about the virtues of commitment and being a team player – or not, in this case.

For these three men, then, this promises to be an even more unusual season than it