Who are the 2026 Formula 1 drivers?

With the 2026 season nearly upon us, all 11 teams – including the new addition of Cadillac – have long confirmed their driver line-ups. Before the campaign kicks off, here is the lowdown on the 22 drivers that will be lining up on the grid this year…

Lando Norris – McLaren

A name that perhaps needs little introduction off the back of 2025, newly-crowned World Champion Lando Norris returns for his seventh season in Formula 1 with McLaren.

After impressing during his junior career, Norris arrived in F1 back in 2019. His first podium followed in 2020, while he became a regular visitor to the rostrum in 2021. The Briton just missed out on a debut victory at Sochi that season, but his breakthrough win finally came at the 2024 Miami Grand Prix.

From there Norris became Max Verstappen’s closest challenger for the championship – and while he had to settle for second on that occasion, the McLaren racer outscored his rivals to seal his maiden title in 2025.

Oscar Piastri – McLaren

Joining Norris at McLaren in 2025 is Oscar Piastri, marking the pair’s fourth season as team mates at the papaya squad.

Following a dispute over his services between McLaren and Alpine, Piastri made his F1 debut for the former in 2023, arriving with a notable record in the junior classes that saw him clinch the F3 and F2 championships on his debut in each category.

The Australian backed up that promise in the top echelon, taking a win in the Qatar Sprint in his maiden season before scoring two Grand Prix victories in 2024. After leading the World Championship for much of 2025 following an early winning streak, Piastri’s challenge faded in the latter stages – but he will be keen to make up for that in 2026.

George Russell – Mercedes

Like Norris, George Russell made his F1 debut in 2019 – and, like Piastri, the Briton had won the F3 and F2 titles back-to-back on his first attempt, arriving with much promise as he joined Williams in Formula 1.

Russell had to be patient during his three-year stint with the Grove-based outfit, the team often finding themselves near the back of the grid. His first points came amid a substitute appearance for Mercedes at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, where only a puncture and pit stop issue saw him miss out on a maiden win.

Further points and a podium followed with Williams in 2021, before his full-time switch to the Silver Arrows in 2022 delivered numerous rostrums and his first Grand Prix victory. Russell impressed as the team’s new leader in 2025, collecting two wins to help Mercedes climb up to second in the Teams’ Championship.

Kimi Antonelli – Mercedes

Kimi Antonelli will enter into his sophomore Formula 1 season in 2026, the Italian having endured various highs and lows during his rookie campaign.

A rapid ascent through the motorsport ranks saw the youngster bypass F3 to make his F2 debut in 2024. Mercedes – having scouted Antonelli during his karting days – felt that the teenager had done enough to earn promotion to their F1 team in 2025.

Antonelli’s maiden season was not without its tough moments, but a Sprint pole in Miami, three podiums and a strong end to the year ensured that he kept his spot at the Silver Arrows into 2026.

Max Verstappen – Red Bull

Another driver to arrive into the sport off the back of a dazzling junior career, Max Verstappen became F1’s youngest-ever competitor when he made his debut as a 17-year-old for Toro Rosso back in 2015.

The Dutchman quickly impressed, claiming his maiden points in his second race before a promotion to Red Bull in 2016 brought a memorable first victory in Barcelona. Verstappen continued to hone his skills in the years that followed as he collected further wins.

A legendary title fight with Lewis Hamilton in 2021 saw Verstappen become World Champion for the first time, the Red Bull driver going on to clinch three more consecutive championships. He ultimately missed out by a mere two points to Lando Norris in 2025 – but his remarkable resurgence following a trickier start to the season makes Verstappen as formidable an opponent as ever entering into 2026.

Isack Hadjar – Red Bull

The other side of the Red Bull garage will look a little different in 2026, as Isack Hadjar prepares to race alongside Verstappen after being promoted from the sister Racing Bulls outfit.

Arriving into F1 as one of a batch of rookies in 2025, Hadjar’s season got off to a rocky start after spinning off on the formation lap of his debut race in Australia. The Frenchman soon recovered, though, and delivered on the promise he had displayed as a 2024 title challenger in Formula 2.

Hadjar scored his first points at Round 3 in Japan and from there continued to add to Racing Bulls’ tally, which included a maiden podium at Zandvoort. All of this was enough to earn the youngster a promotion to Red Bull in 2026, replacing Yuki Tsunoda as the Japanese racer moves to the role of test and reserve driver.

Charles Leclerc – Ferrari

It will be season nine in F1 for Charles Leclerc in 2026, as well as marking the Monegasque’s eighth campaign with Ferrari.

Like Piastri and Russell, Leclerc collected back-to-back titles in F3 and F2 before arriving in the top echelon with Sauber in 2018. Putting his car in the points on numerous occasions showcased his talent – and led to a seat at the Scuderia in 2019.

Leclerc took two wins in his first season with the Italian team, and has since brought his tally up to eight. While Ferrari went without a victory in 2025, Leclerc and the squad will be hoping for better in 2026.

Lewis Hamilton – Ferrari

In a career that has so far spanned 19 seasons, Lewis Hamilton has rewritten the history books since his debut with McLaren in 2007.

After claiming his maiden World Championship with the Woking-based outfit in 2008, Hamilton went on to experience a stunning run of success following his switch to Mercedes in 2013, with driver and team scoring multiple titles between 2014 and 2020.

The Briton made blockbuster headlines when he decided to join Ferrari in 2025 – and while his first campaign with the team was a challenging one, Hamilton will be keen to bounce back in 2026 and add to his glittering record in Formula 1 that has so far featured a historic 105 wins.

Alex Albon – Williams

Alex Albon joined Lando Norris and George Russell in stepping up from F2 to Formula 1 in 2019, the Thai driver making his debut for Toro Rosso. A solid start saw him earn a mid-season promotion to Red Bull, with whom he went on to score two podiums in 2020.

While the Milton Keynes-based outfit replaced him with Sergio Perez for 2021, Albon was retained as a test and reserve driver and earned a return to the grid with Williams in 2022.

It was an opportunity that he seized, establishing himself as a team leader as the Grove-based outfit continued their ascent up the grid. Albon formed a strong line-up with new team mate Carlos Sainz in 2025, helping the team to achieve fifth place in the Teams’ Championship for the first time in eight years.

Carlos Sainz – Williams

Carlos Sainz will again join Albon at Williams in 2026, a year in which both will be hoping to build on a solid 2025 and progress even further up the grid.

Sainz arrived in F1 at Toro Rosso in 2015 alongside Max Verstappen and quickly showcased his talent. Spells with Renault and McLaren followed, with the latter seeing Sainz collect his first podiums in the sport.

A move to Ferrari in 2021 brought further success, the Spaniard regularly finishing on the rostrum as well as claiming four wins. Since his switch to Williams in 2025, Sainz has continued to impress and twice put the squad back on the podium with two top-three finishes.

Liam Lawson – Racing Bulls

After collecting wins in F3 and F2, Liam Lawson was acting as a reserve driver for Red Bull and AlphaTauri when he was called up by the latter in 2023 to substitute for an injured Daniel Ricciardo across five races.

The New Zealander’s performances caught the eye, and he again returned to the grid to replace a struggling Ricciardo for the last six rounds of 2024. Another step up the ladder followed when Red Bull opted to promote him for 2025, placing the young driver alongside Max Verstappen.

Amid two difficult weekends at the start of the season, Lawson was demoted back to Racing Bulls – but a solid remainder of the campaign was enough to ensure that he will remain with the team into 2026.

Arvid Lindblad – Racing Bulls

A new face will arrive on the grid in 2026, as rookie Arvid Lindblad joins Racing Bulls for his maiden F1 outing.

Success in karting saw Lindblad make the switch to single-seaters in 2022, going on to finish fourth in the 2024 F3 championship while he became the youngest race winner in F2 history when he embarked on his debut season in the category at 17 years old in 2025.

Having long been a member of the Red Bull Junior Team, Lindblad was given three FP1 runs for the team in 2025 – and it was announced days before the Abu Dhabi finale that the Briton will compete for the sister Racing Bulls outfit in 2026.

Fernando Alonso – Aston Martin

At the other end of the experience spectrum, Fernando Alonso will be embarking on his 23rd season in F1 in 2026, his fourth campaign with Aston Martin.

After catching the eye during his debut for Minardi in 2001, Alonso went on to achieve back-to-back World Championships as a Renault driver in 2005 and 2006, while subsequent stints with McLaren and Ferrari brought his wins tally up to 32.

Following a hiatus in 2019 and 2020, the Spaniard returned to Formula 1 in 2021 with Alpine before joining Aston Martin in 2023. While he enjoyed eight visits to the podium that season, Alonso has not visited the rostrum since – can he rectify that in 2026?

Lance Stroll – Aston Martin

Remaining at Aston Martin alongside Alonso is Lance Stroll, marking the pair’s fourth season as team mates.

Stroll debuted for Williams back in 2017 aged 18 and memorably scored his first podium in Baku, making him the second youngest driver after Max Verstappen to stand on the rostrum. He moved to the then-named Racing Point outfit in 2019, with his father Lawrence having led a consortium that took over the team midway through 2018.

The Canadian has since continued to race for the squad – which became Aston Martin in 2021 – and will enter into his 10th campaign in the sport in 2026.

Esteban Ocon – Haas

After joining Haas in 2025, the 2026 season will mark Esteban Ocon’s second with the team and his 10th in Formula 1.

Ocon made his debut partway through 2016 for the Manor team, before going on to join Force India. Replaced by Stroll for 2019, the Frenchman spent a year as a reserve driver for Mercedes and subsequently returned to the grid with Renault in 2020.

After the squad became Alpine in 2021, Ocon scored his maiden win at the Hungarian Grand Prix. He went on to switch to Haas in 2025, pairing up with rookie Ollie Bearman.

Ollie Bearman – Haas

The 2026 season will see Ollie Bearman again race alongside Ocon at Haas, off the back of an impressive rookie campaign for the Briton.

During his second year in F2 in 2024, Bearman was called up to replace an unwell Carlos Sainz at Ferrari in Jeddah. The youngster caught the eye after scoring points on his debut, while other substitute appearances followed for Haas later in the season.

This earned Bearman a full-time promotion with the American outfit in 2025, a season in which he scored a career-best P4 finish in Mexico. Can he build on that result even further in 2026?

Nico Hulkenberg – Audi

While Kick Sauber will have a new name when they become Audi in 2026, the team’s line-up will stay the same, led by the veteran Nico Hulkenberg.

After his debut for Williams in 2010, Hulkenberg went on to race for Force India, Sauber and Renault. The German found himself without a seat between 2020 and 2022, but some notable stand-in drives for Racing Point/Aston Martin during this time saw him make his return to the grid with Haas in 2023.

Hulkenberg has been in solid form ever since, switching to Kick Sauber in 2025 and clinching a long-awaited maiden podium at Silverstone on his 239th attempt.

Gabriel Bortoleto – Audi

It will be season two in F1 for Gabriel Bortoleto in 2026, the young Brazilian having made his mark in the junior categories before joining the top echelon.

Like Leclerc, Russell and Piastri before him, Bortoleto triumphed in the Formula 3 and Formula 2 championships on his debut in each, leading to the youngster getting his F1 chance with Kick Sauber in 2025.

While his rookie campaign was not without its tough moments, Bortoleto impressed his bosses with five points finishes and will continue to drive for the squad as they transition into Audi.

Pierre Gasly – Alpine

Pierre Gasly enters into his ninth full-time season in Formula 1 in 2026, the Frenchman continuing on with Alpine.

Gasly first arrived on the grid with Toro Rosso at the end of 2017, going on to race for the squad in 2018 before a call-up to Red Bull in 2019. His struggles to match Max Verstappen saw him demoted back to the sister outfit midway through the season – but Gasly quickly rebuilt, taking his first podium later that year in Brazil.

The highlight of Gasly’s career to date came at the 2020 Italian Grand Prix, where he scored a memorable victory for AlphaTauri. His move to Alpine in 2023 saw him reunite with old rival Esteban Ocon, with whom he shared a surprise podium at the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix. While the team faced a challenging 2025, Gasly will be hoping for better in the year ahead.

Franco Colapinto – Alpine

Alpine will field an unchanged line-up in 2026, as Franco Colapinto continues on as Gasly’s team mate.

A race winner in the junior categories, Colapinto joined the Williams Driver Academy in 2023 and was subsequently drafted in by the F1 team to replace Logan Sargeant during the final nine races of 2024, going on to finish in the points on two occasions.

The Argentinian joined Alpine as a reserve driver for 2025 and found himself back on the grid from Round 7 onwards, having stepped into the seat previously occupied by Jack Doohan. While he failed to score points, Colapinto did enough to earn another season at the squad in 2026.

Valtteri Bottas – Cadillac

An 11th team arrives on the grid in 2026 in the form of Cadillac – but while the American outfit might be new, their drivers are familiar names.

Valtteri Bottas will make his return to the grid, marking his 13th season in the sport. The Finn made his debut for Williams in 2013, claiming nine podiums for the team before his switch to Mercedes in 2017. This took his career to new heights, with Bottas winning 10 races and finishing second in the Drivers' Championship in 2019 and 2020.

A three-year stint with Alfa Romeo/Kick Sauber followed between 2022 and 2024, but the Finnish driver returned to the Silver Arrows as a reserve after finding himself without a seat in 2025. Now he will return to action with Cadillac, marking a new challenge for the veteran racer.

Sergio Perez – Cadillac

Another experienced name lines up alongside Bottas at Cadillac in 2026, with Sergio Perez also making a comeback.

It was back in 2011 that Perez first competed in Formula 1 with Sauber, while stints with McLaren and Force India/Racing Point followed. The latter saw Perez grab a maiden victory at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix.

After being replaced by Sebastian Vettel for 2021, Perez was signed up by Red Bull, with whom he earned five more wins as well as helping the outfit to achieve two Teams’ Championship titles. A more difficult second half of 2024 saw him leave the grid, but in the summer of 2025 the Mexican was announced as a Cadillac driver.