Paddock notebook: Sauber’s Hamilton near-miss, Ferrari’s 2026 engine gamble, Mercedes locks in W17 date, Zhou lands at Cadillac, Vettel reflects
Lewis Hamilton in scarlet still feels surreal. And yet, as the seven-time world champion settles into life at Ferrari in 2025, an old sliding-doors moment has resurfaced: Peter Sauber says he “almost” had Hamilton signed for 2007.
The former team boss has recalled talks over a two-year loan from McLaren that collapsed when Woking wouldn’t play ball. The rest is near-myth: Hamilton debuted with McLaren in 2007 and came within a whisker of becoming F1’s first rookie champion. It’s one of those what-ifs that would’ve rewired modern F1. Imagine Hamilton cutting his teeth at Hinwil before that McLaren rocketship, or never making it there at all. The sport turned on that no.
Ferrari, meanwhile, is leaning into a very different fork in the road. Rumour out of Maranello is that the Scuderia has recommitted to steel-alloy cylinder heads for its 2026 power unit, the much-whispered “Project 678.” The concept was thought to have been shelved last autumn over reliability worries; now, word is an internal breakthrough has put the idea back on the table. It’s bold. Steel heads are heavier than the usual aluminium solutions, but the trade-off can be strength and temperature tolerance—catnip for a manufacturer trying to squeeze efficiency in an era of tighter fuel flow, 50% electrification and active aero. If Ferrari gets the architecture right, that’s a statement. If not, it’s an expensive detour. Either way, it tells you where their head’s at: swing big and make the others respond.
Speaking of 2026, Mercedes has set a date. The W17 will break cover on January 22 as the Brackley group turns the page to F1’s next ruleset. This is the car that aims to carry over the momentum of a 2025 campaign that ended with Mercedes second in the constructors’ standings, then translate it to a formula with fully sustainable fuels, a rebalanced hybrid split, and cars that will trim their wings on the straights. As ever, the devil will be in the packaging: how small, how cool, how cleverly they can marry a power unit’s demands with aero that can live with active surfaces. Don’t expect fireworks at the launch; do expect an air of quiet intent. Mercedes has been here before.
There’s fresh movement elsewhere on the 2026 grid map. Cadillac has confirmed Zhou Guanyu as its reserve driver for the team’s debut campaign. The announcement comes hot on the heels of Zhou’s departure from Ferrari and returns him to a role that leans on experience from his three-season stint at Sauber between 2022 and 2024. For a brand entering F1, a steady hand in the simulator (and a driver who’s been through the midfield grind) is exactly the sort of sensible scaffolding you want behind the race seats. It also keeps Zhou visible and ready should opportunity knock.
And in a quieter corner of the room, Sebastian Vettel has been reflecting—again—on the long tail of his F1 career. After losing the 2018 title fight to Hamilton, Vettel would add only one more win before stepping away at the end of 2022 following two final seasons with Aston Martin. There’s a tenderness to the way he tells it now, a blend of honesty and perspective that feels earned. He isn’t rewriting history; he’s filing it carefully. It’s a reminder that even for four-time champions, the sport can shift under your feet fast. One year you’re the benchmark, the next you’re chasing a car that won’t quite do what your hands are asking.
Tie it all together and you’ve got a Monday that says plenty about where F1 is and where it’s going. The past still echoes—Hamilton’s near-Sauber detour, Vettel’s early sunsets. The present is busy—Mercedes pushing on after a solid 2025, Ferrari taking a swing that could shape 2026. And the future is getting names and faces—Zhou’s Cadillac safety net, a new generation of cars waiting behind the curtain.
The off-season is never really off in this sport. It just trades lap times for decisions, and those can be just as decisive.
