Rumores y confirmaciones (SPA-ENG)

Rumors and confirmations

There are still 10 days to go until the F1 engines roar back to life after the usual annual European summer break.

Meanwhile, teams are already preparing for the next round, which will take place next Sunday, August 31st, at Zandvoort, the historic and usual circuit where the Dutch Grand Prix is ​​held, home of reigning world champion Max Verstappen.

Although ancient tradition insists that team and driver movements usually begin at Monza and in conjunction with the Italian Grand Prix, this ritual has long been ignored, and rumors and confirmations of changes occur practically year-round. Today's F1, so technological, dynamic, and fast, cannot afford to stagnate due to a custom from another era.

For the past couple of days, an open secret seems to have been confirmed, with many claiming that Valteri Bottas has signed a contract with the North American team Cadillac, which will join the grand circus next year and become the eleventh team on the starting grid.

Bottas, currently Mercedes' reserve driver—although many of us are wondering why, given his great presence in the past, with 10 victories in the category—will give up that position to join the testing and development team led by the legendary Mario Andretti.

The one who has yet to sign and is keeping all Mexicans in suspense is Checo Pérez, mentioned by many sources as the second driver for the new team. Another rumor had Brazilians and Mexicans on tenterhooks; the possibility of Felipe Drugovich taking the second seat was mentioned. Until this news, it was assumed that Cadillac wanted two experienced drivers to accelerate the development of its vehicles, aiming to quickly position itself among the top teams and take advantage of the new regulations that require everyone to start practically from scratch. We'll have to wait and see what happens.
Some rumors also continue regarding the world champion, although it has already been officially announced that he will continue with Red Bull for at least another year. Recent images of the driver accompanied on a luxurious, enormous yacht by Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff have once again stirred up the hornet's nest of speculation and rumors.

Several seats remain unconfirmed at different teams, and the paddock is a hotbed of gossip and rumors that has many anxious. Mercedes has not yet signed any of its current drivers. Red Bull only has Max, and it is rumored that Tsunoda will not continue; this could also have repercussions for the second team, the RB Visa Cash APP Racing Team.

One of those unconfirmed is my compatriot Franco Colapinto, who is going through a difficult period at Alpine, although it's fair to say the rest of the team is also going through a difficult period, as the performance of the vehicles is far from what it was the previous year. To make matters worse, some technical and coordination issues have caused its drivers to miss several Grand Prix starts or have had to retire early. The 17-second delays Colapinto took during his two tire stops in the previous race left everyone exposed. Even boss Flavio Briatore can't seem to find a way to get things back on track.

It's assumed that after this race or the next one at Monza, the picture will become clearer, although we know that in the ever-changing world of the sport, anything can happen.