Vettel's leaving: These are the possible replacements for Ferrari

The youth

The name most audible is Carlos Sainz. The Spaniard has shown in the duels with Max Verstappen, Nico Hulkenberg and Lando Norris that he can race very well and certainly impresses on Sunday. Has he shown that he can compete for world titles? No, not yet, but the question is whether that is necessary?

With Charles Leclerc Ferrari has a driver who is at the top, or at least will be at the top within a short time. If in your first year at Ferrari and your second year in Formula 1 you have a quadruple world champion around your ears, then you can race a bit. So the question is, what does Ferrari want?

The second violin

With a long-term contract for the Monegask, Leclerc has clearly been chosen as the future leader and then Ferrari will be in familiar waters. It likes to appoint a second driver who can get the results, but won't get in the way when the leader is on his way to the world title.

Such a driver could be Sainz and might want to be Sainz as well. The Spaniard would be eager for a spot at Ferrari and would know all too well that he's going to get in next to Leclerc. Rubens Barrichello was also a great talent for his step to Ferrari and number two Felipe Massa was even very close to a world title, but both were also able to settle next to the leader.

The signboard

That leader is Leclerc and with Sainz, Ferrari can opt for a talent that could be of service for years to come in Maranello and, if Leclerc leaves, might be able to pull the cart himself. Sainz is a good driver and actually the ideal solution for Ferrari, now that Kimi Raikkonen has become too old to put in that role.

The other option is of course Daniel Ricciardo. Ricciardo himself would very much like to go to Ferrari, but when Ferrari was able to get him before, they didn't choose the Australian either. In addition, Ricciardo wants to be the leader and that will certainly not be the case at Ferrari, where he first also has to deal with the youth, which was not easy at Red Bull Racing either.

Ricciardo would be more inclined to move towards McLaren in that respect. With engines from Mercedes and clear leadership from Andreas Seidl, McLaren is much better on the road than Renault and that would be the right choice for Ricciardo's future. The Australian remains an excellent driver and is a great sign for a team.

Is there anything else?

Many other options don't seem to be available for Ferrari. Lewis Hamilton has made it clear that he will stay with Mercedes and Verstappen has already extended his contract with Red Bull. This leaves the remaining leaders of the map and Ferrari with options that will always be less than Sainz or Ricciardo.

For example, Antonio Giovinazzi is still hoping for an opportunity, but the Italian was already struggling with the old Kimi. Kevin Magnussen has the speed, but is certainly not calm enough to play second violin. Daniil Kvyat has a history as a reserve rider, but the same goes for him as for Magnussen and his speed is still debatable.

Finally two more jokers: Fernando Alonso and Nico Hulkenberg. Alonso could return to Ferrari as the leader, but with that Ferrari gets the problems and they know it. If they have doubts about Leclerc in the next two years then in Alonso the best driver to appoint for the short term, but if Leclerc is too good then that is going to cause problems, as Alonso and Hamilton in 2007 at McLaren. Alonso also needs to be dusted off a bit, now that he has been on the side for two years.

Hulkenberg is only one year out, but the question is still whether he is good enough for the top? He was seen as the most undervalued driver in F1 and is now without a seat. A fine second violin that can finally go for his podium, but is he really a better option than Sainz or Ricciardo?