Two drivers might have already signed their final ‘lucrative’ Formula 1 contracts

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Plenty of Formula 1 drivers see their contracts run out at the end of 2024, including Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas and Red Bull star Sergio Perez.

Nearly every team on the grid have some big decisions to make in the coming months, except McLaren and Mercedes who have already locked in their drivers until 2025.

Speaking on The Race Podcast, journalist Scott Mitchell-Malm has shared that there could be a couple of drivers who have already signed their last big contract in Formula 1.

With no new drivers entering Formula 1 in 2024, the average age of the grid has increased once again this year.

It means that the more experienced drivers are nearing an exit from the sport with a limited pool of racers available to replace them.

Instead of a steady stream of rookies coming into F1, teams are instead preferring to develop a select group of drivers in their academies instead, making it incredibly difficult for unattached drivers in series like Formula 2 to make the final leap in their careers.

However, some driver’s involvement in F1 has to come to an end eventually.

There’s now a good chance that Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas have signed the last lucrative contracts of their Formula 1 careers.

That means they need to decide this year about whether they want to continue or not if it means joining a team further down the grid.

That might be difficult for Bottas given Alfa Romeo’s struggles, but with Audi’s introduction to F1 on the horizon, they’re already eyeing younger drivers.

Bottas and Perez have already signed their last lucrative contracts

Speaking about Alex Albon’s future, Mitchell-Malm said: “I’ll give you a comparison, [Valtteri] Bottas and [Sergio] Perez could conceivably have done their last proper deals in F1.

“They might have another deal in them, but neither of them has a lucrative deal left in their locker.

“I think they can extend their careers but they don’t have a big one.”

The door isn’t shut on Sergio Perez staying at Red Bull beyond 2024, but it’s hard to see the team offering him a long-term contract.

Sauber – now known as Stake – will be in communication with Audi about their potential plans ahead of the 2026 season.

Bottas has suggested he wants to stay with the team, but, he will need to improve his performances compared to last year to be in contention.

Perez and Bottas will have to think carefully when it comes to potentially accepting shorter contracts or if their time in Formula 1 is coming to an end.