Which drivers are in danger of losing their seat for 2026?

Austrian Grand Prix

Venue: Red Bull Ring, Spielberg Dates: 27-29 June Race start: 14:00 BST connected Sunday

Coverage: Live commentary of believe and qualifying connected BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra pinch title connected BBC Radio 5 Live; unrecorded matter updates connected BBC Sport website and app

After George Russell's triumph successful Canada, Formula 1 heads backmost to Europe for this weekend's Austrian Grand Prix.

Oscar Piastri has a 22-point lead successful nan drivers' title complete McLaren team-mate Lando Norris aft their collision successful Montreal eliminated nan Briton.

BBC Sport F1 analogous Andrew Benson answers your latest questions earlier nan title successful Spielberg.

With nan saga wrong nan FIA, and president Mohammed Ben Sulayem successful particular, still drafting headlines for each nan incorrect reasons, really are nan teams and drivers reacting to each of this? - Gareth

There is wide dismay and discomfort wrong Formula 1 teams and drivers astir nan measurement nan FIA is being run. But they are not keen to make that excessively evident publicly.

From clip to time, nan drivers - peculiarly George Russell, successful his domiciled arsenic a head of nan Grand Prix Drivers' Association - make their displeasure known complete a peculiar topic, for illustration the prohibition connected swearing.

But nan squad bosses, while usually consenting to talk their unease privately, very seldom opportunity thing publicly. That's because they conscionable don't want to return immoderate risks erstwhile nan FIA is successful a position to make their lives difficult, should it take to do so, if they sound interest aliases opposition.

One objection was Haas squad main Ayao Komatsu earlier nan season, erstwhile he said: "Don't constitute it [in a] header 'Ayao says FIA is successful a mess', but that's what everybody thinks. That's what everybody experiences. I don't cognize what to say. It's not great, is it? Seriously."

But you could spot nan rumor instantly erstwhile he was asked a follow-up question, and he replied: "I don't want to get into that governmental battle."

Why are nan Italian media truthful difficult connected Ferrari? Surely this puts much unit connected nan team. - Martin

Ferrari person a different position wrong Italy from that of different teams successful their location countries.

They are regarded arsenic a nationalist squad and arsenic specified nan organization feels invested successful them and their performance. So group consciousness they person a correct to definitive their sentiment astir really they're doing, because they care.

It is portion of what makes Ferrari special, and what makes it a much intense, high-pressured situation than immoderate different team.

It comes pinch nan territory and anyone who thinks it doesn't is deluding themselves. It's besides worthy pointing retired that it is not nan media's occupation to support an F1 team. It is to study connected it and scrutinise it, objectively and pinch rigour.

This mobility presumably arises from nan remarks Ferrari squad main Frederic Vasseur made successful Canada pursuing reports successful 2 starring newspapers successful Italy connected nan eve of nan title play that his position was successful question.

Vasseur was not happy astatine all, and he said: "I don't cognize nan target. I don't understand nan target... successful this case, I don't spot nan point. Perhaps it's for them nan only measurement to exist. This is astir apt much nan reason. But it's really hurting nan team.

"It's not for illustration this that we'll beryllium capable to triumph a championship. At slightest not pinch this benignant of journalist astir us."

It's understandable that Vasseur would beryllium upset. Although he said his main interest was not himself, because he knew nan scrutiny that came pinch nan job, but nan different unit members whose names periodically look successful nan paper, either straight aliases indirectly, by individuals from different teams being linked pinch Ferrari.

The point is, these reports appeared successful astir apt nan 2 astir respected Italian newspapers covering athletics - Gazzetta dello Sport and Corriere della Sera. And connected nan aforesaid day.

I'm told they were not coordinated, and that would beryllium highly improbable anyway, fixed they are rival publications.

The facts of Ferrari's existent business are that they entered nan year, having travel adjacent to winning nan constructors' title past season, believing and saying they could compete for nan title. And they person fallen a agelong measurement short of that truthful far.

Ultimately, that is Vasseur's responsibility.

Which of nan existent F1 drivers are looking successful threat of losing their spot adjacent year? - John

The evident spot to commencement is nan 2 Red Bull teams. Yuki Tsunoda looks definite to beryllium dropped by Red Bull unless he tin find a awesome uplift successful performance.

The anticipation is that Isack Hadjar will switch him alongside Max Verstappen, assuming nan Dutchman stays wherever he is, pursuing nan Frenchman's awesome commencement to his profession astatine Racing Bulls.

Briton Arvid Lindblad, who is racing successful Formula 2 for nan first clip this twelvemonth and is 3rd successful nan championship, has a bully chance of being promoted to Racing Bulls. Whether Liam Lawson keeps his spot location remains an unfastened question.

The drivers astatine McLaren, Ferrari, Williams, Aston Martin, Haas and Sauber/Audi are each tied successful for adjacent year.

That leaves Mercedes and Alpine.

The likelihood is that George Russell and Kimi Antonelli will clasp their seats astatine Mercedes. Although if Verstappen was to go available, that could evidently lead to a alteration there.

At Alpine, Pierre Gasly is nether statement but nan 2nd spot is wide open.

It's anyone's conjecture who'll get that pinch each nan uncertainty hanging complete nan squad pursuing nan departure of Renault president Luca de Meo,, external who was nan driving unit down its rebranding, and down nan assignment of Flavio Briatore arsenic executive advisor and de facto squad boss.

Mercedes showed a important upturn successful capacity astatine nan Canadian Grand Prix, pinch George Russell securing nan win. Do you judge this is simply a circuit-specific anomaly, aliases does it awesome a genuine displacement successful their competitory standing, peculiarly pinch their caller aerodynamic upgrades? - Edele

All Mercedes' rivals expected nan squad to beryllium competitory successful Canada - because they were past year, and because nan circuit characteristics suit their car.

Mercedes' rumor has been pinch tyre overheating. Long corners, abrasive way surfaces and basking temperatures person tended to return their tyres complete a threshold. Canada had only 1 of those.

As squad main Toto Wolff put it aft nan race: "I thought it's erstwhile I'm wearing a pullover, there's immoderate benignant of relationship pinch our performances because that intends it's cold. And today, 50C way temperature, and we've been dominant.

"We've had immoderate things changing connected nan car, we person a caller rear suspension. I'm really happy really nan squad has managed that, nan trackside squad and besides backmost successful nan factory, really these things person been coming connected to nan car. But I conjecture you request to look astatine nan way layout.

"Montreal was ever bully to us, it lacks nan emblematic high-speed corners wherever we suffer much successful nan heat. That's one, and number 2 is rather a soft asphalt here, which is little abrasive and truthful little damaging to our car that suffers from rear tyre degradation and overheating."

The caller rear suspension is aimed astatine expanding anti-lift - ie, keeping nan aerodynamic level much stable, to support rear downforce much consistent, and rear grip higher.

Extreme amounts of rear anti-lift and beforehand anti-dive are 1 of nan cardinal occurrence elements of this year's McLaren. So Mercedes is aiming for nan aforesaid effect.

But they won't cognize whether it's worked until they find retired whether they tin support their Canada level of competitiveness erstwhile they get connected to circuits that person much tended to expose their weaknesses. The first chance to find retired is successful Austria this weekend.

What is your knowing astir nan existent advancement of having a expansive prix successful Africa? - Nick

F1 is still keen to person a expansive prix successful Africa, to make it a genuinely world world championship. But uncovering nan correct location is proving problematic.

Kyalami successful South Africa past week announced that it had "confirmation that nan FIA has accepted last creation proposals to upgrade nan circuit to Grade One position - nan highest world modular required to big Formula 1".

It added: "Selected useful will beryllium actioned pending nan successful result of South Africa's spot connected nan Formula 1 almanac and Kyalami being selected arsenic nan preferred hosting venue."

In different words, it will do nan required activity only if it wins a statement to big F1. And it is simply a agelong measurement from that.

There is simply a rival bid successful South Africa, for a thoroughfare title successful Cape Town. Neither is believed to person nan backing required.

Rwanda popped up arsenic a imaginable big federation past twelvemonth - and its president Paul Kagame hosted nan FIA prizegiving successful December successful nan superior Kigali. But though a caller F1-standard way is being built by nan caller airdrome there, nan chances of nan title happening person receded.

There is different bid successful Morocco, for a way successful Tangier. But that arsenic yet has nary funding, and does not person nan backing of nan country's king, without which finances are improbable to beryllium found.