F1 driver 'eruption' coming as Sky Sports pundit expects established stars to be axed
Anthony Davidson has admitted he has the feeling the "driver market is about to erupt" and believes there soon could be more big moves after Lewis Hamilton made the switch to Ferrari.
Hamilton, 39, confirmed the shock decision back in February to leave Mercedes at the end of the season and move to Ferrari for 2025.
Meanwhile, Carlos Sainz is still without a seat after Ferrari moved him on and kept Charles Leclerc after announcing the arrival of Hamilton. Overall, half of the F1 grid find themselves out of contract at the end of the year, with Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso among those in that free-agent group.
Both drivers at Haas, Aston Martin, Alpine, Sauber and Visa Cash App RB are nearing the end of their current contracts. With that in mind, Davidson is expecting there to be movement in the driver market in the coming weeks and feels there is going to be "quite a big turnaround".
Davidson told Sky Sports: "I really get the feeling that the driver market is about to erupt. I don't know if it will happen this weekend, or other weekends coming, but it’s going to happen soon.
"And when it does I’ve just got a feeling that we’re going to have new drivers coming in, drivers that are established here may be leaving. I feel like it’s going to be quite a big turnaround."
Hamilton's decision to quit Mercedes and move to Ferrari shocked the F1 world. Speaking in a statement after the announcement was made, Hamilton said: "I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and I'm so proud of what we have achieved together. Mercedes has been part of my life since I was 13 years old.
"It's a place where I have grown up, so making the decision to leave was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make. But the time is right for me to take this step and I'm excited to be taking on a new challenge.
"I will be forever grateful for the incredible support of my Mercedes family, especially Toto (Wolff, Mercedes' team principal) for his friendship and leadership and I want to finish on a high together. I am 100 per cent committed to delivering the best performance I can this season and making my last year with the Silver Arrows, one to remember."
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