The team-mate battles that will define F1 2021

The eve of a new Formula 1 season is here. The story of the 2021 championship is already underway given the results of the recent test in Bahrain, but now comes what really matters.

Finally, the smoke and mirrors, PR spin and pointless predictions will be blown away by the stopwatch’s brutal reality. Come Q3 in Bahrain on Saturday night, we’ll know the true pecking order (mention the combo of inevitable windy conditions and track layout making this event a bit of an outlier if you dare!).

When the racing starts, F1 will finally have an answer on the true state of the title fight, and the themes of the campaign will be laid bare. In every season and at every team there is a constant specific motif to consider – although the individual flavours vary every year – the ongoing team-mate battles.

PLUS: Why F1's new driver-team combos have a point to prove

At the front of the field, in whatever order Mercedes and Red Bull shake out given the uncertainty over their respective positions, this has a different edge. When wins and world titles are on the line, the battle is more keenly felt – the stakes are higher, the pressures greater.

Into that void again step Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas – possibly for the last time as Mercedes team-mates given their respective contract situations, and George Russell’s rise. Hamilton has had Bottas’ measure at every step since 2017 and the Finn likely still won’t disrupt Mercedes’ carefully constructed intra-team harmony.

But that battle could take on different dimensions if there’s another team finally involved in the title fight.

If Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez are indeed able to get amongst or even beat the Mercedes duo on a regular basis, then things get much more complicated for Mercedes – which has not had to contend with another team at the front for a whole season in the turbo hybrid era. Either Mercedes driver won’t be able to settle for consistent lower scores if those points hauls are consistently lower than usual…

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes speaks to Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing and Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Charles Coates / Motorsport Images

Red Bull has a driver line-up that has never contested a world championship fight – and we will learn much about Verstappen and Perez if they are indeed set to compete for the ultimate prize. But even if Red Bull’s pre-season testing ‘win’ does prove to be F1’s latest false dawn in terms of a multi-team championship scrap, how they go against each other will be one of the stories to watch in 2021.

PLUS: How Red Bull won F1 2021 pre-season testing

Perez is the latest driver to try and match Verstappen – along the lines of how Daniel Ricciardo did before he left Red Bull. Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon know how ruthless the team can be if this test is failed, but Perez gets the benefit of the doubt for now and is an on-paper upgrade given his previous pedigree.

Both McLaren drivers are fantastically fast, so their qualifying head-to-head will be worth watching. But Ricciardo’s reputation as one of F1’s best racers and his status as a proven winner means he brings elements Norris is still striving to find

But Verstappen’s greatness really exposes his team-mates. Gasly and Albon’s struggles arguably elevate Ricciardo’s results against Verstappen (he did, however, benefit from much greater F1 experience), and their trying time with Red Bull has dented their reputations – although Gasly has considerably repaired his with a fine 2020. At the same time, if Perez is able to match or even beat Verstappen, then the Dutchman will face a sudden, serious challenge to his Red Bull status. On the eve of a season, nothing can be ruled out…

These fascinating intra-team dynamics cascade down the grid – no matter how the pecking order ultimately shakes out this year.

At McLaren, Ricciardo is making another new F1 start, and going up against the team’s home-grown star: Lando Norris. Both are fantastically fast, so their qualifying head-to-head will be worth watching. But Ricciardo’s reputation as one of F1’s best racers and his status as a proven winner means he brings elements Norris is still striving to find.

PLUS: How McLaren is going back to the future with Mercedes

But defeat for either in 2021, particularly if it is a heavy one, would be costly. Norris would be able to point to his lack of experience against a 10.5-season veteran, but if Ricciardo loses this fight – as amusing and cuddly as it’ll no doubt appear off-track – his reputation would take a serious hit.

The same goes for the battle between Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon at Ricciardo’s old squad. The rebranded Alpine team will standout thanks to its electric livery (and ungainly, bulbous engine cover), but it will get far more scrutiny with one of motorsport’s most-famous drivers back in the fold. This is excellent for a business trying to promote a road car brand, but any underperformance will be quickly noted.

Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren

Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images

Alonso will be able to lean on the crutch of his two years out of F1 for a time, although it should be remembered that he completed a testing programme in a 2018 Renault and tested its 2020 car in Abu Dhabi late last year, but his status as a world champion means that won’t hold sway for long.

Across the garage, Ocon should now be back to his best after his own F1 absence in 2019 – he admitted that it took him longer than expected to do so in 2020 – and he simply cannot afford to be defeated as comprehensively as Stoffel Vandoorne was when he went up against Alonso at McLaren in 2017-2018, which led to the now Mercedes Formula E racer leaving F1.

PLUS: The mantra Ocon must follow to challenge Alonso

The new AlphaTauri line-up points to fireworks too. That’s not to say Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda will fall out, they are simply exciting racers to watch. Gasly is out to continue repairing his reputation after his half-season as Verstappen’s team-mate in 2019, and surely advertising his skills to other squads if Red Bull continues to keep the door shut on a promotion back to its eponymous ‘Class A’ squad.

Tsunoda is a rookie and will make mistakes, but he’s already made quite an impression on F1 with his testing speed – his long run pace on the final afternoon was particularly impressive. After half-spinning while overtaking Kimi Raikkonen’s slow Alfa Romeo midway through his race simulation, Tsunoda pitted to change tyres and immediately set a personal best on his next lap. Impressive indeed.

Haas has two rookies this year and both will want to shine. Mick Schumacher inevitably carries a weight of expectation given his surname but would likely take a bigger hit if he loses against Nikita Mazepin given Schumacher arrives from the junior formulas with a better reputation. As with all rookies, though, one season isn’t enough to define their full potential.

PLUS: Why Schumacher is unburdened by Leclerc comparisons

Things seem more straightforward at the other two ‘Class C’ squads.

Antonio Giovinazzi needs to impress Alfa Romeo again to stay on beyond 2021 given Ferrari continues to have several highly rated proteges waiting in the wings, while Kimi Raikkonen’s enigmatic legend enters a 19th F1 season – he will simply do as he does, race.

Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri AT02

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

At Williams, Russell is expected to continue having the upper hand over Nicholas Latifi, but at the same time he cannot afford to keep making the mistakes seen in his first two F1 seasons, which could yet endanger his reputation in Mercedes’ eyes if he does not.

PLUS: How F1 2021's tech restrictions could shake up the order

The 2021 driver line-ups at Aston Martin and Ferrari are interesting for very different reasons to each other and the rest.

At Aston, Sebastian Vettel is looking to make as good a new start as he did at the Scuderia in 2015, following on from being edged out of his former home (again) by a new superstar arrival.

Should Sainz prevail in the intra-team fight at Ferrari, then that reasserts how good a pairing they are. But if the newcomer is soundly beaten by Leclerc in 2021, it arguably matters less considering Ferrari is expected to face another season out of the lead fight

Vettel is going up against Lance Stroll, who has results many drivers desire and yet cannot shake questions over his ultimate ability – almost inevitable when a father buys a team and installs his son in one of the race seats… How both Vettel and Stroll are defined on the outside will matter when considering their intra-team results this year – but if they can exceed what the team achieved as Racing Point in 2020 then both will surely benefit.

PLUS: The stark challenges Vettel’s new start now faces

Vettel has more to lose given his past achievements and later career stage but should be given credit for wanting to try something new instead of simply walking off into the sunset.

His former team now has arguably the strongest overall driver line-up on the grid, with Charles Leclerc now joined by Carlos Sainz Jr. Should the newcomer prevail in the intra-team fight, then that reasserts how good a pairing they are. But if Sainz is soundly beaten by Leclerc in 2021, it arguably matters less considering Ferrari is expected to face another season out of the lead fight.

PLUS: The pointed note that starts Ferrari's Leclerc vs Sainz era

The stage is set for F1 2021. History will only record one champion, but the stories in the victor’s wake will be a key part of how the coming campaign is remembered.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF21

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images