With four rounds remaining in the 2024 Formula 1 season, there are already indications that several members of the class of ’24 won’t be around in 2025.

Though the 20 drivers competing in the Bahrain race that opened the season were the same ones that competed in the Abu Dhabi finale the previous year, that will not be the case the following year.

READ MORE: Schumacher says Red Bull driver change “has to happen now.”

Contract expirations, subpar results, and promising young drivers are making the yearly musical chairs in Formula One history.

Carlos Sainz is the sport’s most eligible bachelor, and we already know that Lewis Hamilton will join Ferrari, but what about those who will actually need to drive in 2024 and haven’t yet demonstrated products? These drivers, along with the contenders to replace them, are facing a short-term F1 future.

The 2023 honey badger’s incredible return to competition was cut short when he was hurt during the Dutch Grand Prix weekend.

After F1 rookie Liam Lawson showed up out of the blue and quickly won over AlphaTauri, many speculated that Ricciardo might not be back for 2024.

But at the moment, Yuki Tsunoda is surpassing Ricciardo, the Australian driver who the Faenza team originally chose. All four of this season’s races have seen Yuki outqualify Ricciardo, and the Australian has not scored any of RB’s seven points.

It does not look good to lose to a challenger 176 races his junior and without a podium finish for a race-winning driver at a squad built to foster talent.

By late 2023, Tsunoda and Ricciardo are being monitored close examination, Lawson looked at the Similar to Ricciardo, Kevin Magnussen was abandoned in the motorsports wilderness until unexpectedly proving to be the reliable one, saving a less seasoned competitor.

The Danish driver has been a regular member of the American team since joining Haas in 2017. However, Guenther Steiner, who was responsible for bringing Magnussen to Haas twice, is no longer in charge of the team.

The news that Ollie Bearman, the star of the Ferrari Driver Academy, will take part in six FP1 sessions during the season sparked speculation that he was going to make a breakthrough into the Formula One ranks for 2025.

That is an unheard-of action. There’s no need to hand over a full-time driver’s seat to a novice for any race weekend, as there aren’t many hours to perfect car setup.