Revealed: All the official (and unofficial) goodbyes being said in Abu Dhabi
Three confirmed and two potentially, here's who we may be seeing the last of.
With this weekend being the season finale, there are eight drivers that are saying goodbye in one form on another.
While there is a Constructors’ Championship to be won, there are lots of driver sub-plots to keep an eye out for at the Yas Marina circuit…
The drivers saying goodbye at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Valtteri Bottas
Bottas’ reputation in F1 is like a fine wine in that it seems to get better as the years go on. The Finn is determined to be back on the grid for 2026 but despite that determination, it seems likely this will be the last race we see him compete in.
Bottas was a significant member of the most dominant dynasty in F1 history and it is only as the years have gone by (and we have witnessed Sergio Perez’s performances) that we have come to appreciate how useful Bottas was to the Silver Arrows.
Complaints that he never raced Hamilton were ignored but Bottas’ incredible Q3 consistency and ability to get on the podium (we all still have HAM, VER, BOT burned into our minds) gave Hamilton a platform with which to work his magic.
His move to Alfa was a romantic one and the rebrand to Stake has been tough to stomach but his move out of the spotlight appears to have allowed him to embrace more sides of his personality. A life of bike races, Australia and generally being a cool dude awaits.
Zhou Guanyu
Fairly often in Formula 1 history, drivers will be known for crashes rather than performances and that will most likely be the case for Zhou Guanyu.
His turn 1 flip at Silverstone in 2022 was a testament to the safety of modern F1 and a visual advert for the halo device but aside from that, Zhou has not made the headlines very often.
His P8 in Qatar last time out saw him go to 16 career points but he also opened the door to F1 making a return to China. Even if Antonio Giovinazzi was not happy about it.
Franco Colapinto
This goodbye seems more like a ‘see you soon’ as Franco Colapinto’s early performances propelled him to a driver on the outskirts of an F1 seat to one seemingly on the edge of joining Red Bull.
Red Bull’s interest has cooled but even if Colapinto does not make it to the grid in 2025, flashes of his talent and the sponsors he could attract suggest he will be back on the grid sooner rather than later.
Kevin Magnussen
The third time Magnussen will walk away from F1 but you suspect this time it will be permanent.
In truth, Magnussen was already enjoying some bonus years having left Haas initially in 2020 but his performances at the start of 2022 earned him an extended stay in the series.
A driver that scored a podium on his debut arguably never lived up to his potential but he was a driver determined to do things his way, whether the world agreed with it or not.
Of all the current crop, Magnussen has been the most open to racing elsewhere so it would be no surprise to pop up somewhere in the racing world in the not too distant future; but, the grid can breathe a sigh of the relief that one of the more uncompromising drivers is no longer charging them down in the rear view mirrors.
More on the Red Bull driver decision
Why the stars are aligning for a Liam Lawson Red Bull 2025 promotion
Red Bull rejects Franco Colapinto as Perez exit looms after Abu Dhabi
Sergio Perez
Adios Sergio? We have contemplated Perez’s exit so many times before that there is not much more to be said but our latest information would seem the most conclusive that his time at Red Bull is coming to an end.
If we assume that Abu Dhabi will be Perez’s last race, it is hard to imagine what his legacy will be. Before his move to Red Bull, Perez was a not too dissimilar driver to Magnussen in that he was perfectly capable, if not one that was trusted in a top team.
A stellar 2020 led Red Bull to break their mould and sign an outsider and 2021 was easily his best season with the team as he became the perfect wingman to Verstappen.
But for whatever reason, Perez’s form has got worse and worse to the extent that even Zhou has outscored him in the last four races. A belief that he could challenge for the title was dramatically and ruthlessly crushed by Verstappen and you wonder whether Perez ever recovered from that.
Sponsorship money has no doubt kept him in the seat for so long but at 34, his career is not necessarily over just yet and a future move to a smaller team, out of the spotlight, may allow him to rediscover his best.
Drivers saying goodbye to their current team at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton
A combined 14 world titles later, the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will mark the final race together for Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes.
And while this final stretch of races has represented far from an ideal send-off, Hamilton not expecting that to change in Abu Dhabi, once it is all said and done, celebration and reflection on an icon F1 partnership can begin.
After that, it is onto one of the most exciting F1 driver moves in recent memory as Hamilton heads for Ferrari, adding even further intrigue to what is already promising to be a classic F1 season in 2025.
Carlos Sainz
And the driver who Hamilton replaces at Ferrari is Carlos Sainz.
The Spaniard knew since before this season began that it would be his last with Ferrari, and in a campaign which has produced two race wins ahead of Abu Dhabi, while he has played his part in Ferrari vying for the Constructors’ title going into the final race, Sainz rightfully earned the praise of team boss Fred Vasseur for his professionalism and continued commitment.
A four-time race winner overall with Ferrari, Sainz is putting together a career trend of progressing his team, and his next employer will hope that this continues.
Sainz starts a fresh chapter with Williams after the Abu Dhabi season finale and, unlike Hamilton, Sainz will represent his new team before 2024 is over, as he will appear for the team in the Abu Dhabi post-season test.
Nico Hulkenberg
Joining the F1 veterans on the move is Nico Hulkenberg, who will swap Haas for Sauber next season, as the Audi F1 era moves ever closer.
Sauber may have ensured in Qatar that they will not finish the season pointless, but the 2025 task will be a tough one. Fortunately, they should have the right driver for the job.
Hulkenberg has delivered some highlight drives at Haas – think his front-row start at the 2023 Canadian Grand Prix – performances which will see him remembered as one of the strongest Haas F1 drivers, as he now looks to build the foundations for Audi F1.
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