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F1 Singapore GP: Will they stay or will they go?

The news that Jenson Button and Felipe Massa won't be racing in F1 next season has created the shift in the driver market that many had hoped for, with many of the remaining deals for 2017 expected to fall into the place in the coming weeks, if not days.

Several teams have already firmed up their line-ups, including Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull and now McLaren, while others - Force India and Toro Rosso - have a seat still up for grabs. But what of the rest... we weigh up the chances of the remaining 'uncommitted' drivers.

Valtteri Bottas
Valtteri Bottas is expected to stay with Williams for what will be a fifth consecutive season in 2017, his chances strengthened by the news that Felipe Massa is retiring and Jenson Button is taking a sabbatical. Indeed, with Button uninterested in a return to Williams - for the time being - the team will likely hold onto its experienced lead driver and devote the second seat to young talent, with Canadian youngster Lance Stroll seemingly now the hot favourite to assume the vacant spot.

Sergio Perez
Force India or Renault? He's been racing in F1 since 2011 but Sergio Perez has never been in such demand... that said, ultimately it is his Mexican sponsors that will decide where he races in 2017. Based on this year's results, staying at Force India seems to be the logical choice but many feel Renault is the more 'future-proof' option. Hints suggest Perez is staying put, a potentially huge boost for Force India as his exit would have left no obvious 'wealthily talented' alternative...

Romain Grosjean
He might have considered himself in the running to replace Kimi Raikkonen had the Finn not been confirmed for 2017 back at Silverstone, so Romain Grosjean is expected to stay put at Haas. Though that eye-catching early form hasn't been maintained and there seemed to be some growing dissatisfaction ahead of the summer break, Grosjean is happier with the progress since the hiatus and has always talked of his future in a Haas context

Esteban Gutierrez
Esteban Gutierrez says he has a deal for 2017, but Haas boss Guenther Steiner sounded somewhat less certain of this fact when asked in Spa... and even less so when the Mexican fluffed a potential top ten finish in Monza, tellingly describing the mistake as 'not perfect timing'. Haas has a long-term outlook on its F1 project but while this seemed to extend to an unchanged driver line-up earlier on in the season, there is surely a growing temptation to take a punt on GP3 leader and reserve Charles Leclerc if Gutierrez doesn't at least get on the board soon.

Daniil Kvyat
He started the season with Red Bull, was demoted to Toro Rosso and now Daniil Kvyat is clinging onto the remnants of a fading F1 career. Whilst it was hard not to feel sympathy for the Russian when he was swapped out for Max Verstappen, he has since struggled to justify reasons to ensure a stay of execution in 2017. With next-in-line Red Bull junior Pierre Gasly the hot favourite to join Carlos Sainz at STR next season, Kvyat's 2017 hopes seemingly sit with another team. As it stands though, no team has mentioned the two-time podium winner on their wish-list.

Kevin Magnussen
A last minute - yet welcome - addition to the 2016 grid, it has nonetheless been a challenging comeback season for Kevin Magnussen and it is unclear whether he will be granted a shot for 2017. Magnussen has struggled to turn heads, but while this is partly explained by the lacklustre Renault package, many feel he hasn't dominated rookie team-mate Jolyon Palmer either. Nonetheless, there is hope for Magnussen should Sergio Perez opt to stay at Force India, especially if Renault decides it needs experience to offset the youth of expected second driver Esteban Ocon.

Jolyon Palmer
He signed for Lotus but ended up with a Renault deal. However, Jolyon Palmer - like Kevin Magnussen - has had a hard time establishing himself in 2016. Again, a patchy Renault package can take the majority of the blame but Palmer hasn't shone regularly enough in isolation - and even when he did in Hungary, it ended with him spinning out of a probable points' finish. If one Renault driver has to go, Palmer is the likeliest candidate though his decent backing could make him attractive to a team like Manor.

Pascal Wehrlein
Whilst he is facing up to an intriguing head-to-head with Esteban Ocon for the remainder of the 2016 season, many feel Pascal Wehrlein has done enough with the Manor Racing team to justify another chance in 2017. As for where that will be, Wehrlein could in theory be moved between Mercedes' customers if they propose a tempting deal for Williams and Force India. He is more likely to stay at Manor though as the British team forges a closer working relationship with Mercedes, one that could see it continue making good gains into 2017 following a step forward this year.

Esteban Ocon
For many, Esteban Ocon's rushed promotion to Manor Racing for the remainder of the 2016 F1 season is a prelude to a full-time deal for 2017. Many expect him to be confirmed with Renault, though his ties with Mercedes mean it is hard to second-guess exactly what this deal will look like. Either way, so long as Ocon doesn't disgrace himself in the remaining seven races he will almost certainly be on the grid in Renault or Manor colours next year.

Felipe Nasr
With Felipe Massa retiring, Brazil's F1 hopes rest with Felipe Nasr. After an eye-catching maiden campaign with Sauber in 2015, Nasr has struggled to make much of an impression with the undeveloped C35 this year. Linked with Williams in the wake of Massa's announcement - particularly if his Brazilian sponsors step up to ensure the nation still has a representative in 2017 -, Nasr's chances of staying in F1 probably sit with Sauber only, or more accurately with its new owners.

Marcus Ericsson
Whilst no-one will confirm or deny it, there is a wide assumption that Marcus Ericsson is connected to Sauber's still relatively mysterious new buyers Longbow Finance. With this in mind, it would be safe to expect Ericsson will be heading for a third season with Sauber, though to his credit he has stepped up his efforts in 2016 and has at least been a match for Nasr having trailed his team-mate in 2015.

Outside of F1
Stoffel Vandoorne will ensure there is definitely one (full) rookie on the F1 grid in 2017, but many expect there to be more as the regulation upheaval offers the chance to commit to new talent. European F3 leader Lance Stroll has emerged as a favourite for the remaining Williams seat (at the expense of Alex Lynn), while GP3 leader Charles Leclerc is both highly-rated and comes with Ferrari backing, making him a potentially ideal punt for Haas.

Elsewhere, Sergey Sirotkin and Oliver Rowland come with hefty Renault backing , Manor reserve Jordan King's GP2 season suggests he is ready for an F1 shot in 2017 and Pierre Gasly is considered a shoe-in at Toro Rosso. Then there is Antonio Giovinazzi, one of the few GP2 front runners not associated with any F1 team at the moment but one that has certainly been impressing many influential people in the paddock...

Zdroj: crash.net