Where are they now? The 23 drivers from the F1 2014 season, 10 years on

2014 was the start of a new era of Formula 1 with V6 hybrid engines replacing the old and inefficient V8s.

It signalled the start of a new dynasty with Mercedes going on to win the next eight Constructors’ titles and Lewis Hamilton equalling the championship record set by Michael Schumacher.

And with 10 years passed, while some are still racing to this day, most drivers on the grid that season have enjoyed careers away from the F1 bubble.

1.) Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes

2014 was all the vindication Lewis Hamilton needed.

Having made the surprise move to Mercedes from McLaren, one many thought was motivated by money, 2014 showed Hamilton had his eyes on something else.

He finished 67 points clear of team-mate Nico Rosberg and as we all know now, it was the first of many titles with the Silver Arrows.

Fast forward 10 years and Hamilton is still with Mercedes, aiming for that record-breaking eighth before he hangs up his helmet.

2.) Nico Rosberg – Mercedes

The man who produced the biggest mic-drop moment in F1.

Having been involved in some fearsome fights with Hamilton, Rosberg retired in 2016 after he won the title.

Since then, the German has become a businessman and media personality. On the business side of things, he has become an eco-entrepreneur and invested in a number of climate-friendly companies.

He also has his own Extreme E team, Rosberg X Racing, and is invested in Formula E.

On the media side of things, Rosberg is a regular pundit on Sky Sports F1.

3.) Daniel Ricciardo – Red Bull

Another driver still in the cockpit is Daniel Ricciardo who is back in the Red Bull family six years after he left for Renault.

2014 was his first season at Red Bull and he finished an impressive third, the first non-Mercedes driver in the standings, and even beat reigning champion Sebastian Vettel.

4.) Valtteri Bottas – Williams

Valtteri Bottas’ P4 for Williams seems like a different era with the team now more in the lower half of the grid but the Finn’s career went up and up from here.

In 2017, he got the Mercedes seat before moving to Alfa Romeo/Sauber where he remains to this day.

5.) Sebastian Vettel – Red Bull

Having won the previous four championships, 2014 was quite the drop off for Vettel who ended the year fifth in the championship.

He moved to Ferrari the following year, finishing third in his first season, but never got back to the heights of his Red Bull career.

His F1 career came to an end at Aston Martin in 2022 and for now, he is spending his time with his family while making the occasional return to the track such as at Goodwood last year.

6.) Fernando Alonso – Ferrari

If any of you read our where are they now piece from 2004, you will notice a similar name in this one.

Yes, Fernando Alonso continues to race and in 2014, he was with Ferrari but could only come sixth in what was his last season with the Italian outfit.

From there, he made the ill-advised move to McLaren, pushing him into retirement, before returning with Alpine. He now races for Aston Martin.

7.) Felipe Massa – Williams

After eight seasons in Maranello, Felipe Massa departed Ferrari in 2014 to join Williams but was beaten by team-mate Bottas in his first season.

The Brazilian never returned to the heights of his Ferrari days and after his F1 time was over, he competed in Formula E and stock car racing.

He returned to the F1 news cycle in 2023 when he started to explore legal proceedings against F1 and the FIA over the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.

8.) Jenson Button – McLaren

In 2014, Button was in the twilight of his career and finished the year eighth but it was McLaren’s switch to Honda that was his downfall.

In 2024, Button will be back in racing full time having initially hung up his helmet in 2017.

He did have some infrequent appearances in a number of different competitions alongside his work as a Sky F1 pundit but in 2024 he has committed to racing in WEC for Jota Sport.

He could also add another portion of the Triple Crown to his record should he triumph in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a race he has entered twice previously but failed to finish higher than 39th.

9.) Nico Hulkenberg – Force India

Another driver still racing is Nico Hulkenberg who after a couple years out of full-time competition is back with Haas.

In 2014, the German was racing for Force India alongside Sergio Perez and came ninth in the championship, his second-best season behind 2018.

10.) Sergio Perez – Force India

Speaking of Perez, he finished one spot behind his team-mate in his first season with the team.

The Mexican would stay with the Silverstone team through its many guises before being dropped for Vettel in 2021. He would land on his feet though with Red Bull picking him up and he remains there to this day.

11.) Kevin Magnussen – McLaren

Hulkenberg’s current team-mate was also on the grid in 2014 as Kevin Magnussen made his Formula 1 debut at McLaren.

His first race remains his best-ever result with the Dane finishing on the podium at the season opener in Melbourne.

These days, he is at Haas but heading into the final year of his deal there is speculation as to whether this could be the last we see of K-Mag.

12.) Kimi Raikkonen – Ferrari

The ever-talkative Finn’s finest achievement would come with his 2007 title win but he set plenty of records for longevity in the sport before finally retiring after the 2021 season.

Since then, he has made a couple of NASCAR appearances but it appears the majority of his time is now spent mentoring his son and young karting driver Robin.

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13.) Jean-Éric Vergne – Toro Rosso

Jean-Éric Vergne’s F1 career finished at the end of 2014 but he went on to enjoy a long Formula E career where he remains to this day.

Having first joined Andretti, Vergne moved over to Virgin and then Techeetah before joining Penske in 2022.

The Frenchman has won the series twice in 2018 and 2019 and finished fifth in last year’s standings.

14.) Romain Grosjean – Lotus

Racing for Lotus in 2014, Romain Grosjean went on to Haas in 2016 and is now most remembered for his fiery crash in Bahrain in which he remarkably walked away with his life.

But that was not to be the end of his racing career as he moved across to IndyCar and in 2024 he has a very busy schedule of IndyCar, endurance racing and an F1 punditry gig for Canal+.

15.) Daniil Kvyat – Toro Rosso

Daniil Kvyat bounced around the Red Bull organisation in the later 2010s before leaving the sport in 2021.

After some issues following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kvyat returned to action at the Indianapolis Road Course race in the NASCAR Cup Series for Team Hezeberg and in 2024 will race Lamborghini’s LMDh prototype in WEC and the IMSA SportsCar Championship.

16.) Pastor Maldonado – Lotus

Sharing the garage with Grosjean, 2014 would prove to be Pastor Maldonado’s penultimate as an F1 driver. But in 2016 and 2017 he stayed in the sport as test driver for Pirelli before competing at Le Mans in 2018.

His final racing venture came in IMSA in 2019 but he has been out of the spotlight since then to look after some of his investments.

“My fans are still supporting me and trying to get me to the races” he told F1 in December. “[I] always [get] the comments that ‘we are missing you in Formula 1 because of your character, your personality!’

“[Away from F1] We have a family holding, we do some investments around the world.”

17.) Jules Bianchi – Marussia

2014 was a tragic year for motorsport as highly thought of prospect Jules Bianchi suffered what would prove to be a fatal crash at Suzuka.

The Frenchman, who was the godfather of Charles Leclerc, lost control on the wet surface and hit a recovery vehicle, suffering a diffuse axonal injury.

Bianchi was taken to hospital but would pass away the following July, becoming the first F1 fatality since Ayrton Senna.

18.) Adrian Sutil – Sauber

Another driver nearing the end of his F1 career was Adrian Sutil whose 2014 campaign was his last as a full-time racer.

In 2015, he took up a reserve role at Williams but would do minimal driving after that.

In 2022, he made a return to the track with Gohm Motorsport in the Ferrari Challenge Europe and competed in the same competition in 2023.

19.) Marcus Ericsson – Caterham

Marcus Ericsson is one of those cases of a driver not quite cutting it in Formula 1 but proving to be successful elsewhere.

In 2018, he left the sport and joined IndyCar but his crowning achievement was victory in the 2022 Indy 500.

In 2024, he will move across to Andretti and will also compete in IMSA for the same outfit alongside Wayne Taylor Racing.

20.) Esteban Gutiérrez – Sauber

Esteban Gutiérrez’s racing F1 career ended in 2016 with Haas but he continued to dip his toe in as a development driver for Mercedes.

He was in that role from 2018 to 2022 but stopped last year and took part in just once race in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for CrowdStrike Racing.

21.) Max Chilton – Marussia

Another driver who made the move over to IndyCar is Max Chilton who left F1 three races before the end of the 2014 season.

He then moved to Indy Lights in 2015 before joining IndyCar with Carlin and raced in that competition until 2021.

These days, he has helped in the testing of the record-breaking McMurtry Spéirling.

22.) Kamui Kobayashi – Caterham

Former Sauber driver Kamui Kobayashi is still racing and most recently took part in WEC and Super Formula.

He will drive in those series again in 2014 and he has picked up two WEC titles since leaving F1.

23.) Will Stevens – Caterham

Just the one race in 2014 for Will Stevens but he did take part in the full 2015 season for Marussia.

That would prove to be the last of his competitive action but he remains in F1 to this day as he takes part in some development work for McLaren and has been described by the team as their “secret weapon.”

Special mention

A certain Max Verstappen became the youngest driver to ever participate in a Formula 1 race weekend by driving in FP1 at the Japanese Grand Prix. Although we are not sure whatever happened to him…

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