The next generation battling to topple Lewis

Every now and again a wave of driving talent arrives in Formula 1. Robert Kubica, Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel made their grand prix debuts within a year and a half of each other. Three went on to win world titles and one should have done but for the infamous rally crash that has led to a remarkable comeback. As Edd Straw points out in our cover feature on page 16, the next wave is now arriving. Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris and George Russell are leading it and will be aiming to take Hamilton’s mantle at the top of the sport over the next few seasons. Max Verstappen will be in that fight too, of course, though he is already so established as an F1 top-liner that it’s easy to forget he is only 21, the same age as Leclerc and Russell. Hamilton is aware of the new challengers he is likely to be facing and seems to relish the possibility of fighting the next generation. Let’s hope one or more of them can get into title-fighting contention before Hamilton decides to retire and the current young guns become the established superstars. Once that happens there will surely be another wave building in the junior categories, including FIA Formula 3. The revised championship kicks off in Spain this weekend and on p24 Jack Benyon takes you through the key changes and the drivers who are likely to set the pace in 2019. Another category hoping to act as a launchpad for future stars is the W Series and the all-female championship got under way at Hockenheim last weekend. Lucy Morson’s report of Briton Jamie Chadwick’s victory can be found on p46. At the other end of a career, Fernando Alonso looks set to finally become a world champion again – alongside Sebastien Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima – following another World Endurance success at Spa (report on p36). Some waves last longer than others. Kevin Turner Editor kevin.turner@autosport.com