Latino F1 Drivers to Watch in 2025 — Who’s Competing & Who Could Secure a Seat?
Credit: Renault Group
2025 will be a special year as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the FIA Formula One World Championship. It’s shaping up to be one of the closest seasons ever, with four teams aiming for victories, a tighter midfield, and two teams that may need a miracle just to score a few points. For starters, 2025 is the final year of the current regulations. In 2026, we’ll see an entirely new aerodynamic and mechanical rules package, with teams trying to maximize the performance of their current cars before turning their focus to the 2026 contenders.
To get us up to speed, McLaren appears to be the clear frontrunner, Lewis Hamilton will don a red racing suit as he competes for Ferrari, Mercedes seems to have finally sorted out their car, and last but not least, Red Bull, without Checo Pérez, doesn’t seem to be a clear contender for the title unless Max Verstappen can once again extract the most from the car, which, of course, he’s capable of.
The 2025 season kicks off in Australia this weekend, will travel around the world, and make stops on the American continent with races in Miami, Montreal, Austin, Mexico City, Brazil, and Las Vegas.
Now that we’re up to speed, let’s turn our attention to the stories that matter to us. Where are the Latino F1 drivers? Who is currently driving, and who may secure a seat in 2026?
Will Checo Perez make a comeback?
The newly confirmed Cadillac Formula 1 team will need two drivers. Will they opt for two unproven American drivers, or will they choose an experienced driver like Checo and pair him with a rookie? Hold your breath, as this could unfold in 2026, provided they can produce two race cars in time for the start of the season. To ensure things are moving, we can expect an announcement to happen throughout the 2025 season.
The Latine presence
Without Sergio Perez on the grid, the hopes of Latin America now rest on Brazilian rookie and 2024 F2 champion Sergio Bortoletto, who will be driving for Stake Sauber. The Brazilian is a well-regarded driver who rose through the ranks of the McLaren driver development program. However, he may face a challenging 2024, especially given the perception of Stake Sauber having the slowest car on the grid after the official F1 testing in Bahrain. It will be an interesting year, as this marks the final season of the current F1 regulations and the year the team transitions to become Audi’s F1 team in 2026.
But as we know, there are several confirmed reserve drivers, waiting to replace drivers in their respective teams: Brazil’s Felipe Drugovich, the 2022 Formula 2 champion for Aston Martin; Argentina’s Franco Colapinto for Alpine; and Mexico’s Pato O’Ward, who will be doing double duty as McLaren reserve driver while also racing in the IndyCar series for Arrow McLaren.
Will Colapinto earn a seat in 2025?
The season hasn’t even started yet, but Alpine’s rookie driver Jack Doohan’s seat is already in jeopardy. Franco Colapinto has shown flashes of speed and a strong personality during his brief stint in F1 late in the 2024 season. While Alpine may not be as widely popular as other teams, they could benefit from Colapinto’s appeal and the potential sponsors he could bring to the table.
What about the Spanish drivers?
With the arrival of key technical personnel at Aston Martin, Fernando Alonso could be closer to securing his 33rd win; of course, that’s if the team can resolve the key issues that hampered the car during Bahrain testing.
As for Carlos Sainz, who lost his seat at Ferrari to Lewis Hamilton, the car showed promising improvements during testing, even topping the timesheets on Day 2. However, any F1 expert knows that times in testing can be misleading, as teams are running different fuel loads, engine modes, tire compounds, and conducting new parts testing. That said, I wouldn’t rule out Sainz making it onto the podium at least once this season, especially in races with changing weather conditions or high attrition from other competitors coming into play.