[Journeyer]

Here’s my guesses, some wilder than others:

Red Bull-Renault
1. Sebastian Vettel
2. Kimi Raikkonen

Ferrari
3. Fernando Alonso
4. Nico Hulkenberg

Mercedes
5. Nico Rosberg
6. Lewis Hamilton

Lotus-Renault
7. Jean-Eric Vergne
8. Pastor Maldonado

McLaren-Mercedes
9. Jenson Button
10. Sergio Perez

Force India-Mercedes
11. Adrian Sutil
12. Jules Bianchi

Sauber-Ferrari
14. Felipe Massa
15. Robin Frijns

Toro Rosso-Renault
16. Daniel Ricciardo
17. Antonio Felix da Costa

Williams-Mercedes
18. Valtteri Bottas
19. Daniel Juncadella

Caterham-Renault
20. Charles Pic
21. Giedo van der Garde

Marussia-Ferrari
22. Max Chilton
23. Kevin Magnussen

Other guesses:
– Mark Webber to WEC: Porsche
– Romain Grosjean to WEC: Toyota?
– Paul di Resta to DTM: Mercedes
– Esteban Gutierrez to IndyCar?

Wildcards (those that may yet find spots on this grid):
– Heikki Kovalainen
– Stoffel Vandoorne
– Stefano Coletti
– Felipe Nasr
– Sam Bird

[Prisoner Monkeys]

Scuderia Ferrari
1 – Fernando Alonso
2 – Nico Hulkenberg

Massa decides to retire after winning the Brazilian Grand Prix. Ferrari enlist Nico Hulkenberg into the team.

Red Bull Racing (Renault)
3 – Sebastian Vettel
4 – Daniel Ricciardo

Webber finally has enough of his treatment in the team, and quits. Speculation links Kimi Raikkonen to the team, but they come under pressure to take a Toro Rosso driver and so hire Ricciardo.

Mercedes AMG
5 – Lewis Hamilton
6 – Nico Rosberg

No changes at Mercedes for 2014.

PDVSA Lotus F1 (Renault)
7 – Pastor Maldonado
8 – Felipe Nasr

Lotus’ financial position forces them to drop Grosjean. Raikkonen tries to move to Red Bull, leaving the team with no option but to take someone else. They enlist the well-monied Maldonado and GP2 champion Nasr.

Force India (Mercedes)
9 – Adrian Sutil
10 – Stefano Coletti

Paul di Resta is beaten by his team-mate for the third consecutive season, and is duly replaced by Coletti.

Claro McLaren (Mercedes)
11 – Jenson Button
12 – Sergio Perez

No changes at McLaren.

Scuderia Toro Rosso (Renault)
14 – Jean-Eric Vergne
15 – Antonio Felix da Costa

Vergne earns a repreive when Ricciardo moves to Red Bull. Bt he is up against da Costa, and under pressure to perform.

Sauber F1 (Ferrari)
16 – Jules Bianchi
17 – Robin Frijns

Reaffirming their relationship with Ferrari, Sauber take Jules Bianchi … and his old sparring partner, Frijns.

Astana Team Williams (Mercedes)
18 – Valtteri Bottas
19 – Daniel Juncadella

Williams pick up Mercedes engines, and with them, Daniel Juncadella as his Kazakh sponsors.

Marussia F1 (Ferrari)
20 – Max Chilton
21 – Sergey Sirotkin

Marussia get some Russian flavor with talented – if underage – driver Sirotkin replacing Bianchi.

Caterham F1 (Renault)
22 – Charles Pic
23 – Alexander Rossi

Predictably, van der Garde under-performs in 2013, and is let go. Caterham finally put Alexander Rossi in the seat.

[Hotbottoms]

I totally suck at these predictions, but lets try anyway. I follow lower series very little, so I’m predicting only the top teams (who rarely hire rookies):

Ferrari
1 – Sebastian Vettel
2 – Fernando Alonso
Vettel’s long rumoured Ferrari contract turns out to be true giving Ferrari one of the best line ups of all times. Alonso isn’t very happy about the situation and after a bitter season he is forced to leave.

Red Bull
3 – Kimi Räikkönen
4 – Daniel Ricciardo
Räikkönen’s RBR move turns out to be true also and RBR finally promotes one of the Toro Rosso drivers. The line up seems to be rather weak for a top team like Red Bull, but turns out to be very effective. However, critics claim Red Bull’s success is down to Newey.

Mercedes
5 – Nico Rosberg
6 – Lewis Hamilton
No changes.

Lotus
7 – Romain Grosjean
8 – Pastor Maldonado
Boullier still won’t get rid of Grosjean and the team’s financial trouble forces them to take Maldonado and his money. The bankruptcy seems evident.

McLaren
9 – Sergio Perez
10 – Nico Hülkenberg
McLaren’s lack of succes and strict order doesn’t make them tempting to any of the top drivers, but their ineffective 2013 line up has to be changed. Perez and Button perform alike in 2013, but Perez is younger and has some important sponsors so Button bows out, staying at McLaren as a consultant or something like that. McLaren manages to snatch Hülkenberg, who is eager to make it to a top team.

[Todfod]

Ferrari – Alonso & Hulkenberg
Mclaren – Button & Perez
Red Bull – Vettel and Raikkonen
Lotus – Webber and Massa
Mercedes – Hamilton & Rosberg
Force India – Sutil & Di Resta
Toro Rosso – Ricciardo & Felix Da Costa
Sauber – Guttierez & Bianchi
Williams – Maldonado & Bottas
Caterham – Bird & VDG
Marrussia – Frijns & Vergne

[Antonio Nartea]

I’ll jump in.

Ferrari
1. Fernando Alonso
2. Felipe Massa

TD: Pedro De La Rosa, Kamui Kobayashi

Massa gets another contract extension following a good season, while Ferrari wait for Bianchi to gain some more experience in a midfield car. Gene finally gives up the test driver role in favour of Kobayashi.

Red Bull – Renault
3. Sebastian Vettel
4. Daniel Ricciardo

TD: Sebastian Buemi

Webber jumps the boat to WEC on a 5 year contract with Porsche and Ricciardo gets promoted. Aussie for aussie.

Lotus – Renault
5. Kimi Raikkonen
6. Felipe Nasr

TD: Davide Valsecchi

Lotus keep Raikkonen who rejects a move to Red Bull while Nasr provides a much needed financial relief for the team and a fresh face in the cockpit.

Mercedes
7. Lewis Hamilton
8. Nico Rosberg

TD: Sam Bird

Mercedes retain both their drivers.

Force India – Mercedes
9. Adrian Sutil
10. Jules Bianchi

TD: Conor Daly

Force India retain Sutil and get rid of Di Resta in favour of Bianchi. Di Resta goes back to DTM in a Merc.

McLaren – Mercedes
11. Jenson Button
12. Sergio Perez

TD: Gary Paffett, Oliver Turvey

McLaren retain both their drivers

Toro Rosso – Renault
14. Jean-Eric Vergne
15. Antonio Felix da Costa

TD: Sebastian Buemi

Ricciardo gets a promotion and is replaced by Da Costa. Vergne stays with the team as Marko realizes they have no one else they could put in his seat.

Sauber – Ferrari
16. Nico Hulkenberg
17. Robin Frijns

TD: Fabio Leimer

Hulkenberg stays as he has nowhere else to go. With Claro and Slim’s money going to McLaren, Sauber finally are able to ditch Gutierrez. They promote Frinjs instead.

Williams – Mercedes
18. Valtteri Bottas
19. Daniel Juncadella

TD: Stefano Coletti

Williams switch to Merc power and take on TAK as sponsors, which clears the path for Juncadella who lands the second seat. Maldonado’s money run out and Bottas takes his place in car no.1.

Marussia – Ferrari
20. Luis Razia
21. Max Chilton

TD: Rodolfo Gonzales

With Bianchi gone to Force India, Marussia let Razia have another go. They keep Chilton as the team’s walking/driving ATM.

Caterham – Renault
22. Charles Pic
23. Heikki Kovalainen

TD: Alexander Rossi, Giedo Van Der Garde

Pic keeps his Renault backing and with it, the seat. Caterham realize they are now the last team on the grid and call Kovalainen in. Van Der Garde’s short adventure in F1 comes to an end as he’s relegated back to the TD role.

[Kamui Fan]

Infiniti Red Bull
Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo

Scuderia Ferrari
Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa

Lotus F1 Team
Kimi Raikkonen and Kamui Kobayashi

Mercedes AMG
Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg

Claro McLaren Mercedes
Jenson Button and Sergio Perez

Sahara Force India
Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil

Scuderia Toro Rosso
Jean Eric Vergne and Antonio Felix da Costa

Sauber F1 Team
Nico Hulkenberg and Jules Bianchi

Williams F1 Team
Pastor Maldonado and Valtteri Bottas

Caterham F1 Team
Heikki Kovalainen and Giedo van der Garde

Marussia F1 Team
Charles Pic and Vitaly Petrov

[Deej92]

I’ll have a stab at some predictions:
2014 driver line-up:
Infiniti Red Bull Racing-Renault
1. Vettel, 2. Ricciardo
Webber leaves F1, Ricciardo has a stronger season than Vergne.

Scuderia Ferrari
3. Alonso, 4. Massa

Mercedes AMG Petronas
5. Hamilton, 6. Rosberg

Lotus F1 Team-Renault
7. Kubica, 8. Nasr
Raikkonen tries to move to Red Bull but they want clear number 1 and 2 drivers, so he leaves F1. Kubica re-joins the Enstone team and Nasr gets the second seat due to a good season in GP2 and sponsors.

Emirates McLaren Mercedes
9. Button, 10. Perez
No driver change, but Emirates take over Vodafone as title sponsors after previously sponsoring them in 2006.

Sahara Force India-Mercedes
11. di Resta, 12. Sutil

Sauber F1 Team-Ferrari
14. Hulkenberg, 15. Bianchi
Bianchi’s Ferrari ties mean he is drafted in for Gutierrez, who underperforms.

Scuderia Toro Rosso-Renault
16. Vergne, 17. da Costa
Da Costa is promoted in place of Ricciardo.

Williams F1 Team-Mercedes
18. Maldonado, 19. Bottas

Marussia F1 Team-Ferrari
20. Chilton, 21. Frijns
Frijns replaces Bianchi after the Sauber seat is taken by him.

Caterham F1 Team-Renault
22. Pic, 23. Rossi
Rossi gets a promotion after a solid GP2 season, in place of van der Garde.

[electrolite]

No particular order…

Ferrari Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa/Mark Webber (continuity in a time of big change, but Massa’s final year at Ferrari OR Webber finally takes up Ferrari’s offer and sees out his final year there. Hulkenberg, on the other hand, has a 2015 seat guaranteed if he stays with Sauber in the meantime)
Red Bull Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo (After the Key effect starts to sink in at STR, Ricciardo bags a few decent results towards the end of the year)
Mercedes Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton
Lotus Kimi Raikkonen, Felipe Nasr
McLaren Jenson Button, Sergio Perez
Force India Jules Bianchi, Adrian Sutil (Force India fail to renew Di Resta’s contract, and instead takes up offer of Mercedes third driver).
Sauber Nico Hulkenberg, Esteban Gutierrez
Williams Valtteri Bottas, Pastor Maldonado
Toro Rosso Jean-Eric Vergne, Antonio Felix Da Costa
Marussia Stefano Colletti, Daddy’s Boy
Caterham Alexander Rossi, Charles Pic

[Dion]

Red Bull: Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo
Ferrari: Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg
Lotus: Kimi Raikkonen, Romain Grosjean
Mercedes: Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg
Sauber: Stefano Coletti, Robin Frijns
Force India: Jules Bianchi, Adrian Sutil
Toro Rosso: Jean-Eric Vergne, Antonio Felix da Costa
Williams: Valtteri Bottas, Pastor Maldonado
McLaren: Jenson Button, Sergio Perez
Marussia: Max Chilton, Fabio Leimer
Caterham: Any combination of Giedo van der Garde, Charles Pic and Alexander Rossi

[JamieFranklinF1]

Red Bull: Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo
Ferrari: Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa
Lotus: Kimi Raikkonen and Charles Pic
Mercedes: Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton
McLaren: Jenson Button and Sergio Perez
Force India: Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil
Sauber: Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Gutierrez
Toro Rosso: Jean-Eric Vergne and Antonio Felix Da Costa
Williams: Pastor Maldonado and Valterri Bottas
Marussia: Jules Bianchi and Max Chilton
Caterham: Robin Frijns and Giedo van der Garde

I expect more changes in 2015/2016 than next year to be honest, and most of my changes depend on Lotus deciding that Grosjean isn’t worth it, Total wanting another French driver in the seat, and of course Caterham deciding to go down Marussia’s path and hire a very talented rookie.

[Felipe Bomeny]

I’ll try as well:

RED BULL-INFINITI:
1. Vettel, 2. Ricciardo

After a close duel between Red Bull juniors Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne, the former is promoted, in part due to his marketable image. The ousted Romain Grosjean signs on as the reserve.

FERRARI
3. Alonso, 4. Hulkenberg

Nico Hulkeneberg finally receives his big break after his tough year with Sauber.

LOTUS-FERRARI
5. Raikkonen, 6. Bianchi

Kimi Raikkonen remains at Lotus, where he has built the team around him. Unable to afford Renault engines, Lotus sign for Ferrari engines and along with them, Jules Bianchi.

MERCEDES
7. Rosberg, 8. Hamilton
With Sam Bird being promoted to Force India, Jazeman Jaafar fills his role.

FORCE INDIA-MERCEDES
9. Sutil, 10. Bird
It’s an all-Mercedes affair for the Indian team. Di Resta becomes a Mercedes reserve after being beaten by Sutil at the end of 2013. Robert Wickens signs as a reserve.

McLAREN-MERCEDES
11. Button, 12. Perez

TORO ROSSO-RENAULT
14. Vergne, 15. Felix da Costa
(Sainz Jr. as the reserve)

SAUBER-FERRARI
16. Gutierrez, 17. Frijns
(Nico Müller signs as the reserve)

Williams-Mercedes
18. Bottas, 19. Nasr

After being outperformed by his rookie teammate, Pastor Maldonado is overlooked in favor of Felipe Nasr. Valterri Bottas remains as his teammate as he looks toward a future Mercedes F1 switch. Meanwhile, Maldonado joins EJ Viso’s Team Venezuela effort in IndyCar. Daniel Juncadella signs as the reserve.

MARUSSIA-FERRARI
20. Chilton, 21. Coletti

GP2 frontrunner Coletti partners Max Chilton at Marussia. Raffaele Maricelo, the F3 Euro champ, signs on as the third driver in anticipation of a future Ferrari switch.

CATERHAM-RENAULT
22. Pic, 23. Rossi

Alexander Rossi’s GE backing is instrumental in his signing to the F1 team. Renault man Charles Pic remains with the Anglo-Malaysian squad.

[wsrgo]

@portugoose That is my dream line-up!!!

[Nick]

Mind you, going for F1 Racing/tabloid kind of silly season things here.

Infiniti Red Bull Racing
1. Sebastian Vettel
2. Daniel Ricciardo
Marko and co. liked both STR drivers, but Vergne was asked to stay behind at STR by Renault. Mark Webber doesn’t announce retirement, nor a new deal, making the entire affair reek of the 2011/2 deals at Toro Rosso. Webber gets mouthy on Twitter.

Scuderia Ferrari
3. Fernando Alonso
4. Nico Hülkenberg
Nico’s showings in an underperforming Sauber earned him this seat, as Ferrari plans to develop him as a #1 driver once Alonso retires.

7up Lotus Renault
5. Kimi Räikkönen
6. Romain Grosjean
In a shock announcement, the Coca-Cola group boosts its sponsorship by pushing 7up, leading to British Racing Green Lotuses for the first time in 2 years. Grosjean is held as Renault decides the re-branding at Red Bull does go too far for them and bombard him to be the next French WDC as support. Kimi hails these developments as ‘okay’.

Mercedes AMG F1 Team
7. Nico Rosberg
8. Lewis Hamilton
Mercedes lose Petronas after the tyre test scandal and fail to find a new title sponsor. However, due to improving results and only missing out on 3rd in the constructor’s due to a Monaco DSQ for that championship only, Daimler decides to commit themselves until 2017 regardless of sponsorship.

Tata Force India Mercedes
9. Paul di Resta
10. Adrian Sutil
Being satisfied with both drivers, both drivers being satisfied with their team, they held on through a rocky period in which both Sahara and Kingfisher fell through, and the team was put up for sale. Work continued, Tata Motors stepped in and held on to the team name for monetary benefits.

Claro McLaren Mercedes
11. Sergio Perez
12. Jenson Button
McLaren get Claro sponsorship and lazily run the same color scheme as with Vodafone, simply replacing logos.

Toro Rosso Renault
14. Jean-Eric Vergne
15. A.Felix da Costa
Da Costa gets a go, despite a disappointing season in FR3.5. Red Bull’s immediate response is to put him in an F1 car.

Sauber Petronas F1 Team
16. Jules Bianchi
17. Robin Frijns
With Slim’s money going to McLaren, Guccierez is dropped, citing under-performance. Bianchi gets a deal regardless of his Ferrari links, with Marussia and Sauber going to court over his contract. Frijns steps in after swooning the team.

McGregor Caterham Renault
18. Charles Pic
19. Giedo van der Garde
Both drivers scoring points in an incident-filled Belgium Grand Prix leads to them overtaking Williams, Giedo-mania in the Netherlands and promptly causes McGregor to become title sponsor, ensuring VDG’s drive, while Pic remains Renault’s pick.

Williams F1 Mercedes
20. Valtteri Bottas
21. Sam Bird
No more money from Venezuela means Maldonado gets the sack after scoring 0 points. Bottas gets another chance, as well as Sam Bird, per Mercedes’ request.

Marussia F1 Team
22. Max Chilton
23. Felipe Nasr / Mikhail Aleshin
Chilton keeps his seas courtesy of his ’30’ sponsors, Nasr is brought in for Brazilian money and talent. It is however announced he will have to share with Mikhail Aleshin for at least the Russian GP and 2 beforehand.

[Journeyer]

@npf1 Nice idea with 7-Up, but that’s a Pepsi brand. The Coke equivalent is Sprite. I like a Sauber-Petronas reunion as well, although that would be a step down for Petronas.

[Nick]

@Journeyer I’d like to throw that one on the ‘tabloid’ speculation, but I honestly don’t know how I mixed that up! Sprite could use some marketing too I guess.

As far as Petronas goes, their Sauber livery is a classic and I think it’d get some neat attention, but of course not as much as Mercedes. But then, the Monaco constructors DSQ doesn’t seem very likely either, but I had to make up something. ;)

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