Formula One: Everything you need to know in 2023

There have been changes in personnel and strategies as each Formula One team looks to move up the field in 2023. So, what should you be looking out for?

Red Bull:

Red Bull have to start the 2023 campaign being favourites after their dominant 2022 ended with them being constructors Champion and Max Verstappen winning the Drivers' Championship.

In the off-season Red Bull picked up Daniel Ricciardo as a reserve driver so we might see him take Perez's if he is unable to perform.

Tensions are rising after Sergio Perez was unable to seal a one-two in the drivers' standings in 2022, which Verstappen may have played a part in.

Perez and Verstappen have had a public falling out already after the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix which was only in November. Verstappen said "He has his reasons" why he disobeyed team orders to allow Perez through to help him with his battle for second in the Drivers' standings. This was followed by Perez saying "it shows who he really is". Verstappen's mother then accused Perez of cheating on his wife.

This drama is likely to continue into the coming season. How Red Bull deal with their two drivers will be key as they try to challenge for the championship.

Ferrari:

Ferrari started 2022 looking like challengers for the Championships. A one-two finish at the Bahrain Grand Prix with Red Bull having to retire both cars. However, like in previous years Ferrari faded away. By the French Grand Prix Red Bull and Verstappen looked to have ended the Championship battle, Ferrari didn't even put up much of a fight.

There has to be questions asked about Leclerc's ability to fight for the Championship. During his time in Formula One he has crashed out of 11 races since he joined in 2018. To put this into perspective Lewis Hamilton joined in 2007 and has only crashed out of 13 races.

Although, Leclerc has managed 18 pole positions in 103 entries which is a very impressive. The hope is that in 2023 he can improve his consistency and that Ferrari are able to make the right calls in regard to pit stops and strategies. If they can do this, in a car capable of challenging for the honours, Leclerc can give Verstappen a tougher challenge.

Carlos Sainz is clearly playing second fiddle to Leclerc at Ferrari. He had his best year in F1 last year, with his first victory at the British Grand Prix, but was outscored by his teammate by 62 points.

It will be interesting to see if Sainz can improve in 2023.

Mercedes:

Mercedes struggled with their car in 2022. They seemed to be running different setups on both their cars for most of the 2022 season. Team Principal of Mercedes, Toto Wolff, said Hamilton's recent deficit to Russell is due to "set-up experiments".

Towards the end of the 2022 season Mercedes looked like they did have the best car but this didn't prevent the run Lewis Hamilton had of winning a race in every Formula One season he has entered coming to an end.

George Russell also had an impressive campaign in his first year with Mercedes. Russell got his first win at the Brazilian Grand Prix and outscored Hamilton by 35 points.

In 2023, Mercedes needs to be battling for the honours, as Hamilton chases his record-breaking 8^th Drivers Championship and George Russell should continue to add more race wins to his CV.

Alpine:

In October last year, we got the news that Pierre Gasly will drive alongside Esteban Ocon in 2023. He is replacing four-time world champion Fernando Alonso, and so Gasly has big boots to fill.

It will be interesting to see if Alpine can cement themselves as "best of the rest" in 2023 and hopefully occasionally challenge for some podiums.

Alpine had a very impressive 2022, finishing as "best of the rest" but whether they can continue this in 2023 is another question given that they have downgraded their drivers.

The relationship between Ocon and Gasly will be one to keep an eye on, with both of them having clashes with past teammates. Gasly was also very much the number 1 driver at AlphaTauri so it will be interesting to see how these two deal with each other in 2023.

Gasly has been on a top team before, Red Bull in 2019. He was demoted after a poor run of results. He has no doubt put this behind him since then and has become one of the fan favourites.

In 2023, Alpine should be expected to achieve a few podiums at the very least to continue their upward trend of finishes in Formula One.

McLaren:

McLaren had a lot to live up to after their strong showing in 2021. They were battling Ferrari for third in the constructors, and so McLaren fans expected big things from the British team.

Their expectations came crashing back down to Earth after McLaren's unfortunate continuous car struggles that caused them problems all season. However, they did manage to get a third place finish at Imola.

Coming into 2023 they have replaced Ricciardo with Oscar Piastri, after that confusing announcement from Alpine saying he wouldn't be joining McLaren. They will be hoping they can overtake Alpine and become "best of the rest".

McLaren have consistently said that 2024 is when they will start to compete at the front as their infrastructure upgrades will be completed by then.

They will be looking to go into that season after a good showing in 2023.

Alpha Romeo:

Alfa Romeo have kept both their drivers, Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, from the 2022 season and their strongest showing was at Imola in April, with Bottas finishing Fifth.

It was a very much a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde season in 2022 for the Swiss team, earning 51 points in the first half of the season and only four in the second half. This could be because of the Ferrari engine, Alfa Romeo run, not having many meaningful gains compared to other engine manufactures.

They will be hoping in 2023 they can have a stronger second half to the season and be able to challenge McLaren and Alpine for points.

Aston Martin:

Aston Martin's 2022 was the opposite to Alfa Romeo, with their car looking like one of the worst on the grid at the start of the season. It looked like it might be much of the same, but they changed their design concept in the middle of the year. After this, we saw them catch up with Alfa Romeo in the constructors standings.

The team have been lacklustre - considering the resources they have at their disposal and surely it is only a matter of time before the team rockets up the championship table.

Following Sebastian Vettel's retirement, the British team have brought in Fernando Alonso. Lance Stroll remains at the team.

Haas:

Haas started the 2022 Formula One season having to deal with the issues as a result of Russia invading Ukraine. During this time, Russian born driver Nikita Mazepin had his contract terminated and the team brought in Kevin Magnussen.

Magnussen started the season well, finishing in fifth at the Bahrain Grand Prix. On the other side of the garage Mick Schumacher did not have such a good season. It involved him having lots of crashes.

Schumacher is out and Nico Hulkenberg is in. They have also acquired a new title sponsor in Stake, which is an online cryptocurrency casino. The casino holds an online casino license in Curacao which is an island in the Caribbean Sea.

This year, Haas will be hoping they can pick up more points and their two experienced drivers will keep the cars on track, and out of the walls.

AlphaTauri:

In 2022 AlphaTauri were only able to score 35 points in total compared to 142 in 2021, a massive step back for the Austrian team.

Gasly has joined rivals Alpine and Nyck de Vries has joined the team. De Vries is a good pickup for the team, he won the Formula E championship in 2019/2020. He replaced Alex Albon at Monza for Williams, and scored two points.

The team will be hoping Red Bull provide them with an engine that is more reliable and that they can fight for some points in 2023.

Williams:

Hopes were high for Williams coming into the 2022 season as they entered the season under new management. However, they didn't live up to these expectations.

Alex Albon scored most of the points for the British team, finishing in the top-10 three times.

Nicholas Latifi continued to be unimpressive and has been replaced by Logan Sargaent, in 2023. Sargaent is the first American drive on the grid since 2015 and will be good for the team as Formula One continue to grow in popularity in America.

Williams have also brought in James Vowles as their new Team Principal. The former Motorsport Strategy Director at Mercedes has overseen 120 race victories whilst at Brawn GP and Mercedes.

This year looks like it could be more or less the same as 2022. Though they will be hoping to build momentum for 2024, which is when their new Team Principal can have his full impact on the team.