F1 2026 grid: all confirmed driver line-ups including who will partner Max Verstappen at Red Bull

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The 2026 Formula 1 season is almost upon us and the grid is locked in and ready to take to the track in Australia. Here’s everything you need to know about the F1 2026 driver line-up.

‘Silly season’ for the 2026 grid was a rather relaxed affair compared to 2024, which saw over half the grid out of contract by December.

News of Lewis Hamilton moving to Ferrari in 2025 caused a massive shake-up of the grid, resulting in contract negotiations starting earlier than normal as drivers tried to solidify their seats for this year.

Four seats remained unconfirmed as the summer break came to an end, with all focus on who would join Max Verstappen at Red Bull for the new regulations.

Let’s take a look at the confirmed team line-ups for the 2026 F1 season.

McLaren – Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri

Lando Norris – Multi-year contract (beyond 2027)

Oscar Piastri – Multi-year contract (beyond 2028)

McLaren have solidified their driver line-up until at least the end of the 2027 season, showing their commitment to their future with Norris and Piastri.

With the pair dominating the 2025 season, it is unsurprising that McLaren have opted to continue with their drivers going into the 2026 regulation changes.

Piastri extended his contract with McLaren in March of this year, with his previous contract set to expire in 2026.

Although the exact deadline of both drivers’ contracts has not been specified, it is expected that both will remain with the team for at least two more seasons.

Ferrari – Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton

Charles Leclerc – Multi-year contract (beyond 2027)

Lewis Hamilton – Multi-year contract (end of 2027)

Similar to McLaren, the exact details of Ferrari’s driver contracts are relatively unknown past “multi-year contracts”, however, it is expected that both Hamilton and Leclerc will remain with the team until at least the end of next year.

Ahead of the 2025 season, Leclerc agreed to a new multi-year contract with Ferrari, which would reportedly cover “several more seasons to come”.

Hamilton is reportedly contracted to remain with Ferrari until the end of 2026, although with a difficult start to his first season with the team, focus will be on whether he remains in Maranello after next year.

Mercedes – George Russell and Kimi Antonelli

Driver 1 – George Russell (Multi-year)

Driver 2 – Kimi Antonelli (TBC)

Ahead of the United States Grand Prix, Mercedes announced that it will have an unchanged line-up for 2026 season, with the team re-signing both George Russell and Kimi Antonelli for next year.

Team principal Toto Wolff said: “Confirming our driver line-up was always just a matter of when, not if. We wanted to take our time, handle the negotiations properly and make sure everyone, on all sides, was happy. I’m pleased we have done that.

“George and Kimi have proved a strong pairing and we’re excited to continue our journey together. Our focus is now on the final six races of the year, as we fight for second in the Constructors’, and onwards to 2026 and a new era in F1.”

The team are yet to confirm how long the pair’s contracts have been extended by, although F1 journalist Lawrence Barretto has posted on X that Russell has signed a “multi-year deal” and Antonelli has agreed to a “long-term arrangement”.

Red Bull – Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar

Max Verstappen – 2028

Isack Hadjar – TBC

At the Hungarian Grand Prix, Verstappen revealed that he would remain with Red Bull for the 2026 season, despite heavy speculation that he could be making a jump to Mercedes next year.

Rumours began to grow after the team saw a significant drop in performance, leaving them fourth in the constructors’ championship. The firing of team principal Christian Horner further added to the speculation that Verstappen could also leave the team.

Ahead of the season finale in Abu Dhabi, Red Bull announced that Racing Bulls rookie, Isack Hadjar will partner Verstappen at the team in 2026. Hadjar will replace Yuki Tsunoda, who will remain at the team as a test and reserve driver next year.

Which drivers can count themselves LUCKY to be on the 2026 F1 grid?

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Williams – Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz

Alex Albon – 2027 (Multi-year deal)

Carlos Sainz – 2026 (Options to continue in 2027 or 2028)

Williams started the 2025 season with both Albon and Sainz locked in for at least two years. The Grove-based team ensured that with multi-year contract deals, both their drivers would remain with Williams into the 2026 regulation changes.

Aston Martin – Fernando Alonso & Lance Stroll

Fernando Alonso – Multi-year contract (2026)

Lance Stroll – Multi-year contract (beyond 2026)

Stroll and Alonso will remain at Aston Martin heading into the new season. The three-time world champion has reportedly signed a multi-year contract to the end of 2026 and is showing no signs of retiring, despite completing over 35% of all F1 grands prix.

Stroll has also signed a multi-year contract and is expected to stay with the team beyond 2026. The Canadian’s actual contract terms with Aston Martin are arguably the blurriest on the grid, due to his father, Lawrence Stroll, owning the team.

Audi – Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto

Nico Hulkenberg – 2027

Gabriel Bortoleto – 2026

Alongside the 2026 regulation changes, the Sauber F1 Team will become Audi in the new season. With the amount of changes facing the team, it is no surprise that they have chosen to lock down both Hulkenberg and Bortoleto into 2026.

Visa Cash App Racing Bulls – Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad

Liam Lawson – TBC

Arvid Lindblad – TBC

Visa Cash App Racing Bulls were the last team to announce their 2026 driver line-up, with both Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson out of contract at the end of 2025. Hadjar has been promoted up to Red Bull next season, with Liam Lawson remaining at Racing Bulls.

Red Bull junior Arvid Lindblad will move up to the team from F2, making him the only rookie in 2026. Earlier in the year, Red Bull pushed through a superlicence exemption for the 18-year-old, hinting at a potential move to F1 before the end of 2025, although this did not happen.

Haas – Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman

Esteban Ocon – 2026

Oliver Bearman – 2026

Haas saw a full driver line-up change heading into the 2025 season, with both Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen being replaced by Ocon and Bearman. The team appear to have settled with their driver line-up into the 2026 regulation changes, keeping both the Frenchman and the Brit until the end of next year.

Alpine – Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto

Pierre Gasly – 2028

Franco Colapinto – 2026 (multi-year contract)

Alpine have undeniably faced heavy disruption in the 2025 season, including the replacement of Jack Doohan for Franco Colapinto after just six races. Despite the driver swap, Colapinto has also struggled in the second Alpine seat, with his 2025 future still remaining uncertain.

Alpine appear to have a rolling contract for Colapinto, meaning that the team’s driver line-up could change again before the end of this year.

With this year’s line-up still up in the air, it’s difficult to predict who could join Gasly at Alpine in 2026.

Cadillac – Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez

Driver 1 – Valtteri Bottas

Driver 2 – Sergio Perez

The most anticipation around the 2026 F1 line-ups surrounded Cadillac, which will be joining the grid next season.

The American outfit officially announced its line-up ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix, finally revealing that Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez will race with the team next year.

Both drivers have previously competed in Formula 1, with a combined total of 527 race starts. Bottas had spent twelve seasons in F1, before being dropped by Sauber at the end of 2024. The Finn has already taken 10 race wins and a full total of 67 podiums.

Sergio Perez also previously had a successful F1 career, with 39 podiums and six wins. The Mexican driver joined Red Bull in 2021, finishing second in the drivers’ championship in 2023. Perez had struggled with performance in 2024, which ultimately saw him dropped and replaced by Liam Lawson for 2025.