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5 mid-season driver swaps that paid off – and 5 that didn’t – as Lawson steps up to replace Ricciardo
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The 2024 season has seen not one but two teams opt to make changes to their driver line-up midway through the campaign – Williams choosing to replace Logan Sargeant with rookie Franco Colapinto from the Italian Grand Prix onwards, while RB will field Liam Lawson in Daniel Ricciardo’s place as of Austin, with the Australian’s immediate exit confirmed last month.
It is not uncommon for such a swap to be made during the season, though, with countless moves like these happening in the sport’s history. But while some of those switches have proven to be inspired, others have not quite worked out.
READ MORE: Lawson reveals advice Ricciardo gave him after RB seat swap was confirmed
Ahead of Lawson’s return to the grid, we’ve taken a look back at five mid-season driver swaps that paid off – and five that didn’t…
Driver changes that paid off
Verstappen/Kvyat at Red Bull, 2016
The Red Bull top brass have never been afraid to make a driver switch before a season is completed – just ask the likes of Pierre Gasly, Scott Speed and Sebastien Bourdais, all of whom were swapped out midway through a campaign.
Perhaps the most notable of these changes, though, occurred in 2016, when a direct swap saw Max Verstappen replace Daniil Kvyat at the main Red Bull team – while Kvyat was demoted back to the junior Toro Rosso outfit after only four races that season.
Verstappen and Kvyat made a direct team swap in 2016 – after which Verstappen promptly took victory on his debut for Red Bull
The decision may have raised eyebrows for some at the time, given that the then 18-year-old Verstappen had only 24 Grands Prix under his belt. But the Dutchman quickly showed why the squad had put their faith in him by taking a sensational win upon his debut at the Spanish Grand Prix, making him the youngest driver to ever take an F1 victory.
For Verstappen the rest is history, having gone on to claim 61 wins to date en route to three World Championships. Kvyat, meanwhile, remained with Toro Rosso before being dropped after the 2017 United States Grand Prix. He later made a surprise return to the team in 2019, where he stayed for a two-year stint ahead of his second exit from the grid at the end of 2020.
Schumacher/Gachot/Moreno at Jordan/Benetton, 1991
Eddie Jordan was faced with quite the dilemma in the summer of 1991 when one of his drivers, Bertrand Gachot, was handed a prison sentence following an altercation with a London taxi driver, resulting in him being unable to compete in the upcoming Belgian Grand Prix.
While Jordan had initially wanted Stefan Johansson in the car, he ultimately went for a rookie by the name of Michael Schumacher. The young German had been competing in sportscars, and as such an F1 test was quickly arranged for him just a few days before the race at Spa.
That lack of experience did not harm Schumacher, who outqualified veteran team mate Andrea de Cesaris to line up an impressive P7 on the grid. And while his race was quickly over – the Jordan 191’s clutch giving out after only a few metres – the overall weekend was enough to hint that Schumacher had something special.
Schumacher's brief debut for Jordan was enough for him to catch the eye of Benetton
As such, Benetton were keen to sign Schumacher with immediate effect and won the battle against Jordan for his services. Another driver swap rapidly ensued, with Schumacher replacing Roberto Moreno while the Brazilian moved to Jordan. The German driver’s ascent soon continued, marking the beginnings of one of the most successful F1 careers in history.
Salo substituting for Schumacher at Ferrari, 1999
Fast-forward several years into Schumacher’s tenure in the sport and, by 1999, the then 30-year-old was attempting to follow up the two World Championships he had claimed with Benetton at Ferrari, having joined the Scuderia in 1996.
His title challenge this time quickly unfolded, however, when the man from Hurth suffered a broken leg in a heavy crash at the British Grand Prix. With this leaving him sidelined, Ferrari needed a replacement to back up Eddie Irvine as the Northern Irishman launched a title charge of his own.
Their chosen substitute was Mika Salo, who had been left without a full-time seat on the grid that season following stints with the likes of Tyrrell and Arrows. The Finn was quick to get up to speed and looked on course for a victory in only his second outing for Ferrari in Germany, before having to concede the position to Irvine to help the latter’s championship prospects.
While Salo’s time at the squad only covered six races, his results – which included a second podium in Italy – were enough to help the Italian team secure the constructors’ title for the first time since 1983.
Salo proved to be a solid substitute at Ferrari, supporting Irvine as the Northern Irishman launched a championship bid
Colapinto/Sargeant at Williams, 2024
It might still be early days for this one, but another driver to make an immediate impression post-swap has been Franco Colapinto, the rookie brought into complete the 2024 season for Williams in place of Logan Sargeant.
Despite earning a second season with the Grove outfit following his debut campaign in 2023, Sargeant’s future already looked somewhat uncertain at the start of the year – and perhaps even more so when the American was forced to hand his car over to team mate Alex Albon at the Australian Grand Prix when the squad were left with only one chassis following a practice crash for Albon.
READ MORE: ‘He deserves a place in F1’ – Vowles on his efforts to seal Sauber seat for Colapinto
The rumours came to an end ahead of the Italian Grand Prix when Williams announced that Colapinto – a member of the team’s academy who had been competing in Formula 2 – would fill Sargeant’s seat for the final nine rounds of the championship.
After a clean first weekend at Monza, Colapinto caught the eye a fortnight later in Azerbaijan by reaching Q3 in qualifying, before scoring his debut points with a P8 finish in Sunday’s race. While there are no vacancies at the team in 2025, the Argentinian has surely put himself on the radar of others.
Colapinto has made an impression since stepping in at Williams
Vettel/Speed at Toro Rosso, 2007
As mentioned earlier, Red Bull have been known to make a mid-season driver change or two – indeed, this will not be the last one featured in this list! But another one that paid off happened in 2007, when a 'rookie' by the name of Sebastian Vettel was given an opportunity at Toro Rosso.
A then 19-year-old Vettel had made his F1 debut at the United States Grand Prix, standing in for an injured Robert Kubica at Sauber BMW. After scoring points by ending the race in eighth, Red Bull decided to bring him into their junior team – at the expense of American driver Scott Speed.
TREMAYNE: The night Vettel was on song in Singapore and sealed his last ever F1 victory
Vettel made his first appearance for Toro Rosso in Hungary and, while there were some mixed fortunes in subsequent races, the youngster again impressed by taking P4 in China, the best result that the team had scored up until that point.
In the year that followed, Vettel memorably clinched his debut pole position and victory at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix, a taste of what was to come as the German driver went on to achieve a further 52 wins and four World Championships in his extensive F1 career.
Vettel made his debut for Toro Rosso at the 2007 Hungarian Grand Prix
Driver changes that didn’t pay off
Badoer/Fisichella substituting for Massa at Ferrari, 2009
During qualifying for the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix, a freak accident occurred when Felipe Massa was struck on the helmet by a spring that had detached from the rear suspension of Rubens Barrichello’s Brawn. The impact knocked the Ferrari driver unconscious, resulting in him crashing into a tyre barrier.
After undergoing surgery, Massa began his recovery journey which would ultimately see him return to action in 2010. But during his absence, the Scuderia first called on long-time test driver Luca Badoer to step in.
READ MORE: 10 of the most remarkable injury comebacks in F1 history
Unfortunately for the Italian, he struggled to make an impression, finishing 17th and 14th at Valencia and Spa-Francorchamps respectively – but Badoer's family continue to race, with son Brando recently joining the McLaren Driver Development Programme.
Following those two rounds, Ferrari announced that Giancarlo Fisichella would make the switch from Force India to compete in the final five Grands Prix for the team. With this making him one of the few Italian drivers to race for the outfit, the move was a dream one for Fisichella.
The results, though, were perhaps not quite as great as the man from Rome may have hoped for. His best was ninth place in his debut outing for the squad at Monza, and the season finale in Abu Dhabi ultimately proved to be Fisichella’s last race in Formula 1.
Fisichella's dream opportunity at Ferrari did not deliver the results he might have hoped for
Villeneuve/Trulli at Renault, 2004
After making their return to F1 in 2002 – following on from their purchase of the Benetton squad – the Renault team looked to be on the ascent by 2004, with Fernando Alonso making a name for himself during his third campaign in the sport.
It was team mate Jarno Trulli, however, who had scored the squad’s only victory of the year with his sole career win in Monaco. Despite this, the Italian’s relationship with the team deteriorated during the remainder of the season, leading to his early exit with three races still to go.
While Trulli secured a drive with Toyota for the final two Grands Prix and beyond, Renault recruited former world champion Jacques Villeneuve to complete the last three events. The Canadian had already signed to Sauber for 2005, but the Hinwil outfit allowed him to see out 2004 for the Enstone team.
Alonso added to Renault’s championship tally with three top-five finishes, but Villeneuve was unable to match this and ended each race well outside of the points. This also meant that the squad missed out on beating BAR Honda to second place in the constructors’.
Villeneuve participated in three Grands Prix for Renault at the end of 2004, his best result being a P10
Grosjean/Piquet at Renault, 2009
Another driver to be swapped in at Renault a few years down the line from Villeneuve’s difficult run was Romain Grosjean. Nelson Piquet Jr had been dropped by the team after the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2009, meaning that they needed a replacement for the remaining seven rounds.
The outfit called on reserve driver Grosjean, giving the young Frenchman his debut in Formula 1 in Valencia. Having not undertaken any testing, it was perhaps unsurprising that he was some way off new team mate Fernando Alonso’s pace in his first weekend.
LIGHTS TO FLAG: Romain Grosjean on Renault, Haas, that crash – and swapping F1 for racing in America
From there Grosjean struggled to make much ground in the races that followed – a crash on the opening lap came at the next race in Belgium, while his best result of the campaign was a P13 in Brazil.
His performances across those Grands Prix were not enough to secure Grosjean a second season with Renault, meaning that he was left without a seat in 2010 and did not return to the grid until 2012 with the Lotus squad.
Grosjean made his F1 debut for Renault at the 2009 European Grand Prix
Jos Verstappen/Jan Magnussen at Stewart, 1998
Of the current grid, Max Verstappen and Kevin Magnussen are both drivers familiar with sudden changes – see above for Verstappen, while Magnussen made a surprise last-minute comeback to F1 for the 2022 season after a year away from the sport.
Another thing that the pair have in common is that both of their fathers raced in F1 – and that they, coincidentally, were linked in a seat swap situation too. Jan Magnussen had made an one-off appearance for McLaren in place of an unwell Mika Hakkinen in 1995, before securing a seat with Stewart Grand Prix in 1997.
GREATEST RACE: Kevin Magnussen remembers the Grand Prix that ‘changed my world’ on and off the track
However, the Dane was outperformed by team mate Rubens Barrichello and, after seven races in 1998, the outfit chose to replace him with Jos Verstappen, who had been left without a seat following his exit from Tyrrell at the end of the previous year.
Like Magnussen, Verstappen ultimately failed to beat Barrichello, a mission not helped by a string of retirements due to mechanical issues with the car. The Dutchman was let go at the end of the campaign, but later returned to F1 with Arrows in 2000.
Jos Verstappen's stint with Stewart in 1998 did not yield any points
Ricciardo/De Vries at RB, 2023
Off the back of a tough two-year spell with McLaren, Daniel Ricciardo returned to the Red Bull fold as a reserve driver in 2023, seemingly ready to take some time away from front-line driving to regroup.
But a return to the grid came perhaps a little sooner than expected when the company asked him to take the seat of Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri midway through the season, the Dutch driver having been unable to match the performances of team mate Yuki Tsunoda.
On just his third weekend back in the saddle, Ricciardo’s comeback hit a snag when he suffered a broken hand during practice for the Dutch Grand Prix, leaving him sidelined for five races – during which substitute Liam Lawson made a strong impression.
While Ricciardo had a decent run upon his return – a high point being a P7 finish in Mexico – the Australian did not manage to recapture his form of old in the season that followed.
Days after an emotional weekend dominated by rumours over his future at the Singapore Grand Prix, it was confirmed that Ricciardo would leave the RB team with immediate effect, while Lawson will return in his place for the remainder of 2024.
Daniel Ricciardo and RB part ways
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