Young talent pushing Formula One to brink of generational shift

Racing Bulls' turn on Lawson isn't happening in a vacuum. Nearly every team in F1 has come around to the value of young drivers in 2024. It started with the incredible performances of McLaren's 23-year-old Australian driver, Oscar Piastri, who has won two races this season and scored more points than anyone in the past seven races. 

McLaren took a risk by signing the rookie Piastri last season, but that risk has already paid off in spades. As the rest of the grid plays catch-up by giving its junior drivers testing opportunities, it is realizing that the next generation is capable of giving the current grid a run for its money.

Williams found this out a few weeks ago, when it swapped American driver Logan Sargeant for 21-year-old Argentinian rookie Franco Colapinto. Colapinto blew past his expectations almost immediately. In his debut race at Monza, Colapinto finished 12th; in his second race, he finished eighth and scored his first F1 points.

Williams' lineup is set for 2025 with the signings of Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz. But Colapinto's strong performances already have teams scrambling to sign him. 

British driver Ollie Bearman doesn't need anyone to scramble. He's already signed up with Haas for the 2025 season. But the 19-year-old has still found time to surpass expectations in his two appearances this season. He drove Carlos Sainz's Ferrari in Jeddah after Sainz went down with an appendicitis. He also drove Kevin Magnussen's Haas in Baku after Magnussen was suspended for unsportsmanlike conduct. 

Two very different cars, two very different tracks, but it mattered little. Bearman scored points both times.

"It was really great to see the rookies doing so well today," seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton said after last weekend's Grand Prix in Baku. "To see such great young talent coming through with bright futures, and to be racing amongst them, was really cool."

Hamilton will continue racing against the likes of Bearman and Colapinto next season. He's signed on for another few seasons with Ferrari. But who is replacing him at Mercedes? 17-year-old Kimi Antonelli, who will become one of the youngest F1 drivers in history when he takes Hamilton's seat in 2025.

Ultimately, seeing young drivers excel is great for F1. But drivers in the existing grid — many of whom have been racing for four seasons or more — might not view it that way.

After a history-making summer of F1 stasis, the young drivers of the sport are proving that no one's seat is safe.